Life in the Ivy
by scarlettstones
Summary: When you're an European duchess growing up in America, you get the best of things— including universities. Bella was instantly accepted into Harvard University and finds herself thrown into situations of major proportions. And what's with the cocky guy opposite her dorm?
1. Chapter 1

Harvard University. What do you think everyone does there? It's not all filled with uncool geeks, you know. In the beginning of the year, you start seeing the newcomers filling in the recently-vacant dorms. That's the group I fall in now.

Being a freshman is hard. You share your dorm with people who do weird stuff. But if your dorm isn't full of them, you might as well consider yourself lucky this time, because when you're in college, you only get lucky once. If you're forever lucky, tell me a few tricks up your sleeves which makes you lucky every time.

During my first day, I only brought five luggage bags with me. I stared at the whiteboard on the door with four names.

My last name came up first, then a Brandon & a Hale. The last was Denali. Damn whoever who added my name at the top of the board.

Renee pasted labels on my luggage bags, her excuse being "everyone gets mixed up with which is which". My smallest luggage had to be my "personals" that included my laptop and iPhone dock. I had another luggage the same size as my "personals", and those were my "intimates".

The reason why I'm telling you this is because something bad happened to me and it involved my junk in my "intimates" luggage.

"Here, let me give you a hand with that," a velvet voice said over my shoulder.

"No, no. That's all right. I've got it—" I began, but that was before my "intimates" luggage fell down and the contents were out. If you drop your items on the first day of the "rest of your life", you should be embarrassed except that I was not because I was too distracted with my luggage.

I instinctively looked up, about to ask for help. For a moment, I stared into a pair of irrelevant (green, if you must know) eyes, but his expression held a challenge: "entertain me, or I'll entertain myself at your expense" was what it said. His lips twisted into a smirk. He was giving me the idea that he was apparently mocking me.

"Oh– uhm– yikes?" I stammered, making my words sound like a question. I bent down, picking up my underwear and bras and shoved them back into the luggage.

"I'd offer to assist you, but usually I like to buy a girl dinner or at least a drink before handling her... underwear." The luggage-droppingly handsome guy spoke, still smirking.

"Sorry, but I have a boyfriend," I replied.

"What makes you think I'm asking?"

Uh-oh. Wrong move. "You made it sound that way," I quickly said, opening the door. What did make me think that? I mentally kicked myself and tried not to let that smirk distract me... or that unusual bronze hair... or the way his upper arms were straining against the sleeves of his polo shirt... or– crap– stay focused!

I straightened, meeting his eyes. He stared right back. Uncomfortable silence was what's going on.

"I'm flattered," he said, one step closer towards me, "but you're not my type. Though I'm wondering how your boyfriend would feel if he knew that another guy has seen your unders on the first day?"

The perfect comeback was already on the tip of my tongue– but I didn't know why I couldn't remember it when this guy was standing so close to me. He made thinking hard. I couldn't even remember my boyfriend's name. His name was... uhm... it was...

"Hey, I just met you and this is crazy but here's my number, so call me may—" I turned my bloody ringtone off of my cell and unlocked it when I saw it was my boyfriend (whose name I could finally remember) of two years, Jacob Black. it was about something like his cell phone getting confiscated and other stuff I just couldn't read properly with this guy in front of me.

"Was that him?" The guy's voice was so alluring and smooth like velvet that I almost said it wasn't. And just like he read my damn mind, he continued, "your so-called 'boyfriend'?"

"No," I snapped. "I mean, yes he is my boyfriend but no, he isn't so-called my 'boyfriend'." Okay, that was a little confusing. I just couldn't understand myself anymore, so I gave up. "I'd better unpack my stuff in my room." I quickly said, pointing to the luggage. "Well, I'm right here at my dorm, C 24, so if you don't mind—" I got cut off when a girl opened the door.

And it was the second time my jaw dropped.

The girl– blonde hair and big blue eyes and flawless– was undeniably gorgeous. She lifted her long fingers in a wave and I waved back halfway, realizing it was for the beautiful– scratch that– mean boy beside me. "Oh– hello," She said after asking a question in fluent French. Her English was in an accent partially French and partially English. She sounded snobbish– ahem, I meant sophisticated. She was waif thin and tall with a flowing dress which made her look like some clone of a famous celebrity.

"Hi, I'm Bella," I said.

"And I'm Rosalie Lillian Hale. You can call me Rosalie, Rose, or Rosie, if that's easier." She replied. Her eyes lit up like she was receiving her first makeup set on Christmas. "Oh! You are Isabella Marie, no?" She cried, air-kissing my cheeks. "Hello, roommate! I see you have already met Edward. He is _such_ an asshole, is he not?"

"Call me that again and I'll shove you down the gutter, french fry." Edward warned.

"Ooh, I'm so scared! Someone save me!" Rosalie cried, sarcasm dripping as the back of her hand dramatically pressed against her forehead. She could seriously go for acting classes if she keeps doing that.

My mind ran through its mental iPod, scrolling down the Awkward Playlist to fit how I was feeling right now. I gathered my items and quickly squeezed through the door frame with my luggage dragging behind me.

"Anyone home?" No response. I shrugged to myself and put down my luggage. I opened my "intimates" luggage and picked up one cotton underwear. "Note to self: shop for sexier underwear," I sighed.

"Did someone say 'shopping'? Oh my God, I so need to go too! Like seriously! My clothes are all too out-of-trend I feel left out!" A girl who skipped out of one of the rooms said. As she skipped, she was the most graceful person I've ever seen. Everything about her screams graceful. Her small and short body shape screams graceful. She had a black bob haircut and her eyes were dark brown. She was like a pixie. Her glistening smile could catch everyone's attention. Her eyes raged when she saw me.

Uh-oh.

* * *

Hey guys! So this is a re-write of one of my old stories and I just felt so bad for abandoning my story. I really hope you guys will enjoy this one. I've read my drafts again and again just to make sure I don't have any errors. Errors get me on "writer's rage".

Oh, and I need a Beta! One that's really good in French too, since you've read that Rosalie's French. I suck at French. PM me if you're interested!

Scarlett


	2. Chapter 2

It was already bad enough that someone has mocked me with and without talking, and I seriously didn't want to be on anyone's bad on move-in day. The pixie-girl pulled me to one side and glared at me. She was pretty strong for a person her size to pull a normal-sized girl far.

"You!" She hissed.

"What?" I replied in confusion. It's not like she went to my private academy and made fun of me or something.

"You are coming with me. To somewhere. Somewhere you can fulfill that 'note to self'."

"What?" I repeated, but now in disbelief.

The pixie-girl wanted to take me out panty-shopping on move-in day. That was the strangest thing I've ever encountered. Ever.

"You're in need of new clothes, lad–"

"Bella," I interrupted, telling her my name. I didn't want her to call me random stuff anyways.

She gasped and froze, then shook her head, as if she was pulling herself out of her thoughts. I really hoped she didn't Google me. "You need to change! This is college, lady!" She scolded.

Oh great. I got scolded on move-in day by a swearing pixie? "I'm not going to! It's my problem!" I told her.

"I'm asking you to change your wardrobe, not your personality! Just your fucking wardrobe, Bella!" She replied.

"Okay, you listen here, Pixie–"

"Alice!" She screeched out her name.

"I don't care about your name too!"

A girl showed up from the door, reading what looked like a dictionary in her hand. She had impossibly strawberry-blonde straight hair and wore glasses which complemented her face. Her ice-blue eyes were a beautiful shade. Her skin was beautiful too, just completing her whole look. She wore a blue skater dress and white glossy pumps. "Oops, am I interrupting your fight? Sorry," she muttered. "I'm Katrina, by the way. Call me Kate."

"Okay, Kate," I smiled at her. Kate entered what seemed like her room and closed the door gently.

"See? Even a geek like Kate can dress up nicely! What are you even wearing?! Ragged jean shorts and a vandalized shirt and converse?! You are simply unbelievable," Alice sighed. I just stared at her, thinking what the hell she was blabbering about since she went on and on about my outfit.

I raised my hand, stopping her from talking. "Tell you what, we're going shopping. That's all we're gonna do."

She squealed, jumping on me. I almost fell to the ground and got a concussion. "Oh my God oh my God oh my God! Thank you!"

"Get off me, Pixie." I hissed.

And so that's how I ended up here at the mall or the "torture chamber" as I call it. Everywhere I went, I saw clothes. Uncomfortable clothes I say. It's stupid risking my body just for terrifying clothes. And that brought me to the question of how Lady Gaga could even survive in that meat dress. I bet she attracted flies and the people sitting beside her would smell.

And with Alice skipping beside me, she brought me to where I could fulfill that 'note to self': Victoria's Secret. Oh the horror. She even asked the lady at the counter to measure me which was very embarrassing. When she got my measurement, she went around getting me bras and underwear. And sure, she surprises me every time.

"Oh Bella, since we're officially in college thanks to move-in day, let's prepare a bit for the crazy life in Harvard," Alice said as she looked at something behind me and naturally curious, I turned back. And honestly, I wished I didn't turn back.

It was lingerie everywhere. It had a range from black to purple, A-cups to E-cups. There were even stretchable ones, could you believe it? I almost died (which is a bad thing) when I took it all in. Now this was proof that Alice was officially the craziest person living.

"What the hell, Alice?! We aren't having sex in college. Plus, I'm still a virgin! You are so not serious about this," I said.

"I am so serious about this," Alice replied. She stuck out her tongue in a childish way.

"Please, Alice. I'm begging!"

Alice tapped her chin as she was so-called "thinking". Her eyes looked up the ceiling and she snapped her fingers, smiling. "I like the fact you're begging, but... no!"

"Alice," I warned.

"Bella," she shot back, "eventually you're gonna lose your v-card and I'm bettin' on it. And, extra points for me since I'm always right."

"Then I'm going to have to prove you wrong."

"Oh Isabella, you are a little stubborn one, aren't you?" She said, puckering her lips as she tried to reach my cheek.

"Unfortunately, I am. Alice, please! Like, seriously! I'm gonna swear on my life that I won't be losing my virginity in college!"

"Swear on your life only if you manage to keep your v-card in college, which is impossible to." Alice told me off. I gave her puppy eyes, which made her look like she wanted to kill me happily since maybe I looked too cute that I needed to be killed. "Fine," she sighed. I did a little happy dance. "Only if you let me get you your new wardrobe."

"Fine with it," I replied.

"Sure?"

"Yes, Alice. If I lose my virginity or 'v-card' as you call it, you're going to be the first to be told of the news and you will get for me all of these, if you want. I keep to my word, Alice."

"Tempting... very tempting... okay!" She exclaimed.

And, in the end, after shopping we got back to our dorm and she threw out almost everything after a thorough check through my wardrobe which left me with a yellow cotton scarf and my skinny jeans.

I was whimpering about my favorite shirts she threw away and Alice shot me a glare to shut up. After the whole situation, she went out to the cafe on campus and I checked whether Kate was in her room. She wasn't even in her room, and Rosalie too. So I was left alone on move-in day, watching movies on an LCD television Alice said she installed it by herself and allowed me to watch.

"Hello? Is anyone home?" A guy's voice called as he knocked on the door.

I groaned, getting up from the couch. "Coming!"

It was a man with dirty blonde hair, blue eyes and he was quite muscular. "Uhm, hi. I'm Jasper Whitlock. I was getting to know at least one person from each dorm, so if you don't mind, what's your name?"

Ah. Southern accent. Alice would like that since she kept talking about what she wanted in a guy. She thought that guys with southern accents were sexy.

"I'm Bella. Bella Swan."

"So you're a beautiful swan, huh?"

I shrugged. "I get that a lot."

"Okay. If you need anything, my dorm's C 23."

"Wow," I chuckled. "We're neighbors."

He smiled. "Yes we are," he nodded.

Then, all of a sudden, which kind of ruined the moment, Edward, all sweaty and shirtless, was walking up the stairs carrying a huge box. He spotted us, then opened his mouth. "Yo Jazz, if you feel like taking a break from flirting, let me know. She's not worth it, I tell ya. She's taken, still dating her high school boyfriend..."

Boyfriend? What boyfriend?

Wait, what did he say again?! REWIND!

I ran through his words again and got furious my cheeks were so hot it was going to flow out lava.

"Well, see you soon, then. Bye Bella." Jasper said, walking away as he waved. He then entered C 23. In big bold letters, there was a McCarty, Cullen, Whitlock, and a Newton.

Ah crap. What rotten luck I have. Oh well, I had to live with it anyways.

"So your name's...," Edward started, looking at the board, "Isabella Swan, eh? Oh whatever. I don't care about your name anyways." He shrugged.

"And I never really cared about your name either, so get out of my face!" I told him off, then slammed the door in his face.

* * *

So... Hello! I just changed the ratings to M, since I just realised some of the contents are a little (ahem) mature. So... yeah. Hah. I'm kinda awkward right now. Bye!

Scarlett


	3. Chapter 3

I was sulking, screaming in the dorm about what I hated about Edward.

Total jerk.

"What happened?" Alice entered as she stared at me.

I stared back at her, frozen. "I was talking to Jasper when suddenly Edward came around saying I wasn't worth it because I have a boyfriend! Bloody bastard. Fucking—"

"Okay. Don't need to shout. Jeez, you're getting worked up on move-in day. Get a grip of yourself," Alice said, putting down her bag on the couch. "Well, suck it up. We're having guys as neighbors." She said, her voice getting louder as she went farther from me to her room. I leaned against the door frame as she talked to me. "Anyways, how does Jasper & Edward look and act like?"

"Edward, I already said, is a bloody bastard. He has sex hair and abs. He's hot but he acts like a jerk. Jasper is clearly the opposite of him. He's blonde and very much of a gentleman. Oh, and he has a southern accent," I added.

"Really?" Alice asked, jumping on her toes.

I nodded and she squealed. Alice took her bag and entered her room and Rosalie came in the dorm. She held a lit cigarette between her pointer and middle fingers, taking one puff of it. Hoops of smoke came out from her mouth.

"Ew, no smoking please," I said, opening the windows for fresh air. "I'm tired. I'm gonna head to bed now." I yawned.

"Wait! You're going to bed? At nine? You kidding me?" Alice asked in disbelief.

"I'm not kidding, Pixie. I'm so so tired I can doze off anytime..."

"Well, if she wants to sleep, let her. It is move-in day after all and it's very tiring," Rosalie cut in with her strange accent. "Everyone needs beauty sleep."

"Except that I'm not going to sleep for beauty. I'm just very tired," I added.

"I'll wake you up at eight," Alice said.

"Wait, where's geek-girl?" Rosalie asked.

"I have no damn idea." I replied.

"She's probably in the library studying," Alice predicted.

"Nobody goes to the library to study. It's just plain weirdness here. Everyone does everything but study in the library." I told her in a matter-of-factly tone.

"But she does. Ask her tomorrow about where she was at. In fact, she'll answer like this: 'oh, studying. At the library. It's pretty cool there'."

"I sure am bettin' on that," I said. "Okay, peeps. I'm gonna sleep now." I walked to my room, my head hitting my pillow and slept peacefully.

* * *

"Wake up! Wake up! Bella, wake up!" Alice shouted. I shifted my body. I groaned, moving my head to the other side. "Bella, wake up! Isabella Marie Swan! Wake UP!" She slapped my body with her small hands and it was quickly replaced with a stuffed toy. The slapping stopped and no more shouting was audible. I snuggled into my pillow and hid under the covers.

"Isabella Marie, get the hell up!" Alice disturbed me again. I groaned and pushed her away. She sighed, then took a deep breath. "ISABELLA MARIE SWAN GET YOUR FUCKING ASS OFF YOUR FUCKING BED, BITCH!" She screamed.

I fell out of bed, hitting the floor hard. "What the fuck, Alice! I'm trying to sleep, dumbass!" I threw my pillow at her and got up, grabbing my green towel from my chair.

"You really need your sleep, huh? You took eleven hours to sleep!" Alice said. "What are you, pregnant?"

I froze. "What?" My voice broke.

She laughed. "I'm just kidding!" She paused. "Shit, are you?"

I quickly shook my head and made my escape to the bathroom. Ha, pregnant. Seriously?

"Oh my God! Bella, who's the father?!" Alice screamed from outside.

I groaned. "I am not pregnant! Fuck, Alice! What gave you that idea?!" I shouted back at here as I slipped out of my clothes. She didn't reply, but I could hear her giggle. After changing my clothes, I made coffee for myself and leaned against the simple cabinet. "Hi, Kate."

Kate smiled and nodded, acknowledging me. "Morning. I didn't catch your name yesterday."

"I'm Bella. Where did you go yesterday?"

"Oh, studying. At the library. It's pretty cool there." She replied.

Alice is a really freaky short pixie.

"Oh" was all I managed to say.

"You guys make up?" Kate asked.

"Who?"

"Pixie & you got into a fight yesterday."

"Oh," I said, "about that... yeah, we did. Her name's Alice. She's freaky. She even predicted that you'd say those exact same words when I asked where you went."

Kate chuckled. "Wow. I bet she has tarot cards."

"I don't think she has. She started the fight because I wore something 'unacceptable' to her and she took me shopping after I gave up. It was five hours of torture, I say. Stay away from her," I replied.

"Stay away from who?" Alice bounced in, taking the cookie jar and digging her hand in it. She took the biggest cookie and chewed on it.

"The boys from C 23. I told you about them last night." I lied, but part of it was true. The boys needed to be far away as possible.

"Rosalie met one of them last night. What was his name again? Uhm... Oh yes, it's Emmett. She spent the night with him."

I scrunched my face, disgusted. "Ugh. Rose's in his trap for sure."

"Emmett's a nice guy. Edward asked her where you were. She said you were sleeping."

My coffee almost spilled out of my mouth. "What?" I squeaked, choking on my coffee. Kate started slapping my back.

"Oh Bella, are you okay? Sorry, but I just had to tell you." Alice apologized.

I waved her off. "No," I coughed. "No, never mind. It's just... shocking."

_Shocking? Seriously, Bells! WRONG WORD!_, my inner devils screams.

"So Rosalie's still in C 23?" I asked.

"LET'S GET HER BACK!" Alice exclaimed.

"Wai— WHAT?! You wanna get into their dorm and—"

"Yes! Oh, you got the idea!" She said. Again, I was amazed at how strong she was to pull a normal-sized girl when she's pixie-sized. My inner conscience sighed. I had to get used to her unusual strength.


	4. Chapter 4

Alice knocked on the door, then tapped her stilettos on the floor so hard I swear there was even a dent there. When the door opened, she asked, "Where is Rosalie Lillian Hale aka Rose, Rosie, or Rosalie?"

"Oh hey Alice, she's inside." A big muscular guy said with an British accent. He had curly brown hair and blue eyes. "Oh goodness! Bella, is that you?"

I grinned. "Hello Em!"

"Okay, guys. I know you both know each other because you're distant relatives, but pause there for a minute. Rosalie!" Alice shouted behind Emmett and pushed him away. I entered with her, her hand tugging mine. I opened every door and I greeted Jasper, who waved to Alice & I. Alice was dazed for that moment, then continued searching for Rose.

_Remember, IT'S A TRAP!_, the voice of my private academy History teacher who kept on giving us advice before we went to college. The "guys want only one thing" trap was what she warned the girls when she gave us breaks from studies. At least she cared about us.

"Oh mon cheriè, what are you doing here?" Rosalie asked when she came out from the bathroom.

_Here to save YOU, obviously! But since you enjoy the company of the enemy's lair, I DON'T CARE ABOUT YOU!_, my inner devil shouts.

And so, when my devil starts talking, my angel starts nagging, defending the innocent ones. I sighed. "Well, it's time for you to come back." I said.

"Okay, Bella! Goodbye, Emmett." She waved at Emmett and walked out with us. The strange thing was that Edward was nowhere around. I was relieved and elated. He was the one who pisses me off anyways. We entered the dorm and Rosalie took out her cell phone. "Okay, mes chèris! Lunch's on me! What do you want? Pizza?"

"CHEESE & PEPPERONI!" Alice shouted from her room.

"Cheese & pepperoni it is, then." Rosalie muttered. I slumped down the couch, my eyes fluttering to a close.

* * *

"She's so sleepy! Oh! Ah shit, I need another can of beer."

"WHY?! THIS MOVIE SUCKS!" Rosalie shouted in French before speaking in English again. "This movie is shit, Alice! Where the fuck did you find this?!"

"What?! You call this shit? This is Casablanca, you're talking about!"

"It's the worst movie ever! I hate Rick! He's a mother fucker, I tell you! I HATE HIM!"

I opened my eyes to a crying Rosalie and a drunk Alice. I was still in the same position, the TV showing Casablanca. I stared at Rosalie, who was cursing at the television. Alice took another can of beer from the cooler box beside the couch. "What is this, a black-and-white movie marathon?" I said.

"Yeah. Thank God you're awake. Rosalie, if you break the DVD, you're going to die," Alice warned.

Rosalie took out the DVD from the player and looked like she could break it with her eyes. She screamed, then continued crying.

"I cannot take this anymore! I hate this movie! Someone, please take it away from my hands!" Rosalie said, her hands shaking and the DVD was going to fall any time. I raised from the couch, walking to her and snatching it away from her hands with a sigh. "There you go," I said.

"Merci, mon chèrie!" She thanked me, sitting back at the leather couch with a box of tissues in her hand. I switched the movie to Romeo & Juliet, one of my favorites from all times. As it was starting, the black-and-white tone of the movie calmed me. Throughout the whole movie, Rosalie & I cried together and Alice was tipping on her toes, giggling for no reason as she was drunk.

"BELLA! EDWARD WANTS TO GEEK OUT WITH YOU AND HAVE KIDS NAMED ROMEO & JULIET!" Alice shrieked suddenly.

"Wai— WHAT?!" I said.


	5. Chapter 5

Drunk Alice is basically like PMS Alice, except that Drunk Alice doesn't remember anything and gets a hangover the next morning.

If you piss Alice off when she's drunk/having PMS, you'll get in trouble times ten. And, if Alice pisses you off, don't do anything. She's a crybaby when you scold her. After Alice was talking trash about "Edward wants to geek out with you and have kids named Romeo & Juliet" kind of crap, I locked Alice in her room until she got back to her senses.

And it was a really long night.

Rosalie & I went to change into our nightwear and said goodnight to each other and Kate, who was still reading her dictionary in her bed. We headed to our bedrooms and clearly, I wasn't getting good sleep. I'd wake up every five minutes just because Alice's pissed off and she wanted to get out of her room. She gave up and passed out at 4:27 in the morning.

Waking up at twelve in the afternoon, I slipped on my bunny slippers and unlocked Alice's room door in case she bangs the door again venting out her anger. I went to the bathroom to get a bubble bath, pampering myself as I took a copy of Letters To Juliet and reading peacefully until I dozed off – a sign of not getting enough sleep – and almost drowned in the water which made me wake up. My book was soaked and I cursed Drunk Alice for last night. I got out of the bathtub and dried myself with a towel.

I changed into a pair of "fashionable" sweatpants (those were Alice's words, not mine) and a sports bra, I prepared myself for a jog after I spent half an hour blow-drying my book. I gave up after only managing to dry the first five pages and left it at the window.

"Where do you think you're going?" I heard Rosalie ask in French as I was putting on my Nikes.

I glanced up at her. She was wearing a black sheer button tee and dark-washed jeans. Six-inch high heels were at her feet.

"Oh, I'm going down to jog," I replied, understanding French. "Why?" I asked.

"There's the orientation going on right now. Where is Alice?"

I pointed towards Alice's room. "She's probably sleeping. Wake her up."

She immediately walked towards Alice's room and opened her door wide open. I heard a loud thud and Alice cursing.

"Prèparez-vous," Rosalie told her. "Orientation starts in thirty minutes."

"Orientation?" Alice mumbled. "We have that?"

"Orientation starts in thirty minutes," Rosalie repeated in her French-English accent.

I removed my Nikes. "Hey Rose? I'm changing."

"Ooh, c'est maqnifique! Change then! Dress to impress!" Rosalie responded to my words.

I ran to my room and quickly threw out a white Max Mara maxi dress with a gold belt and wedges. I wore them on and a silver headband on my head. I glided my nude lipstick and fastened on my feather earrings.

When I came out, I heard a catcall and my head snapped towards the direction I heard it from.

"Wow, little sis! You look hot!" I heard Emmett compliment me and I rolled my eyes. He was sitting on the couch, occupying all of the space.

Rosalie was pouting at the mirror, putting on red lipstick. She glanced at me through the mirror and waved. "Hello. You look beautiful, mon chèrie! Alice is in her bedroom. She'll be out in a time!"

I frowned. "Do you mean 'out in no time'?"

Her eyes brightened up. "Ooh! Yes! Merci beaucoup!"

"So... what's Emmett doing here?" I asked.

"I am here to escort the lovely and beautiful Rosalie." Emmett replied. "Edward will regret what he said when he takes a look at you!"

I froze. "What did he say?"

"That you only wear rags and jean shorts. The best you have probably ever worn is a gunny sack." Rosalie told me, twisting her lipstick down and popping back on the cap.

My face felt so hot that I probably wouldn't have known if lava was flowing out of my ears.

"That son of a bitch!" I screamed.

Emmett chuckled but stopped when Rosalie glared at him.

"Oh, he'll regret those words once he sees me in these!" I hissed. I was really glad that Alice got me a new wardrobe from that moment on.

"Who'll regret when they see– ooh!" Alice stopped in her tracks as she came out of her room, staring at me with wide eyes. "Damn girl, you're really adapting!"

I crossed my arms. "Of course I am. Where's that son of a bitch?"

"Come on, don't call him that! His mother is a really nice person!" Emmett said.

"Then I'll call him a cocky bastard," I held my chin high and looked at him. "Hurry up, guys. Let's go."

Emmett linked arms with Rosalie, but Rosalie didn't look like she was even a teeny-bit interested in him.

Alice was gushing about how nice I looked and that I should probably stick with this look. I had to agree with her on that. I looked awesome in this bohemian-chic style.

Once we were downstairs, we joined the big circle of "froshlings". A senior was sitting together with us. He had dark shoulder-length hair and blue eyes.

"Hello guys, my name's Garrett Marshall and I'm a senior here. I stay in the Wigglesworth dormitory like all of you and for the icebreakers, we'll start playing 'Two Truths and A Lie'! Anyone doesn't know how to play the game?" The senior asked.

Rosalie was the only one to raise her hand up. Everyone stared at her.

Garrett looked surprised. "Uhm... okay!" he awkwardly chuckled. "Not the first time I've seen someone who doesn't know how to play this game!"

He was lying. Totally.

He explained it to Rosalie, who nodded slowly but her eyes still seemed lost.

"Do you understand?" He asked.

Her mouth was slightly opened and she had a lost look. "Oh yes! I understand perfectly."

Garrett clapped his hands together once and started the game. Everyone was called out in alphabetical order by their last names.

"Brandon, Alice?" Garrett said out loud from his piece of paper.

Alice jumped on her ass. "That's me! I'm Alice and I'm from New York! Okay I've got this! I drive a yellow Porsche 911 Turbo. I have never went to Michael Kors' fashion show and I don't like pudding."

"You look like the type to have a driver." A guy shouted out.

"I have a driver, but I drive that car!" Alice replied.

"You don't like pudding!" Kate gave it a try.

Alice smiled and clapped joyfully. "You're right! Yay!"

The next person I knew to be called was Edward. He just couldn't be bothered at all. Period.

"Cullen, Edward?" Garrett called out.

Edward barely raised his hand. "I'm Edward. I'm from Chicago. I own four vintage cars, I'm allergic to peanuts and I'm not fond of a certain brunette who suddenly has a sense of style today."

"The allergy!" One guy said.

Edward shook his head.

I couldn't help but play in his round. "You don't like that certain brunette? Well guess what, she doesn't like you too. You probably shouldn't judge a girl like that. Who knows? Maybe one of your whores enjoy wearing rags and jean shorts." I smirked.

Edward started having shallow breaths and I knew I ticked him off.

"Shut. Your. Trap." He said with finality. He glared at me.

"Ooh, now that's new!" I sarcastically said. "Protecting your whores now? I thought you're one of those guys who love 'em then leave 'em!"

"Never trust the things you read online," he seethed.

"Oh, I never read about you online! Why would I? I know from how you treated me yesterday! Offering dinner after seeing a lady drop her luggage of intimates is a really good way of trying to get under her pants, but that didn't work!" I exclaimed, my sarcastic tone getting stronger by the minute. "So you start hating on me for no reason whatsoever because I didn't give you a taste of my rainbow."

Edward glared at me and I glared back. Everyone stared at the intensity of our fight.

Garrett clapped his hands together once again, snapping everyone out of the situation. "Well, why don't we get on with the next person?"


	6. Chapter 6

"Hale, Rosalie?" Garrett looked around.

Rosalie was beside me, her head on my shoulder as she slept. I guess she didn't sleep well last night as well.

"HALE, ROSALIE?" Garrett repeated, louder.

I shrugged my shoulder, nudging her to wake up. She yawned and slowly raised her head. "Que?"

"It's your turn," I whispered.

She jolted, really awake by now. "Oh!" Everyone was staring at her now.

Her next words made me face palm.

"I'm Rosalie and I–uh... ha-ha!" She giggled nervously first. "I'm Rosalie and I'm from France. My two truths are that I like popcorn and I have a kitten named Bijou. My lie is that I have a tattoo on my arse." She said out loud.

Everyone stared at her in disbelief. She waved them off and slept on my shoulder again. I wanted to push her off my shoulder and pretend that she wasn't my roommate.

"Thank you for sharing that with us." Garrett chuckled. "So... clearly she didn't understand me."

A lot of people went before me before my name was being called. I had thought through my two truths and my lie, making sure that Edward wouldn't manage to get revenge by talking about any of my truths and lie.

"Swan, Isabella?" Garrett asked. I raised my hand. "Oh, okay. You may begin."

"I prefer to be called Bella, so hi. I'm from Washington. I don't like the outdoors. I'm majoring in Literature, and I can drive stick shift." I said out loud.

"Driving stick!" I recognised Jasper's voice. I smiled at him. "You don't look like the type."

"I don't have to look like the type. In the end, I can drive stick shift." I replied. "Nice try."

"The outdoors?" A blond-haired girl said. "Bohos are supposed to enjoy the outdoors."

"Wrong again! I really don't like the outdoors. Makes me sticky." I shuddered. "And I'm not a boho. Like others, I find this style quite unique."

When the game was over, Garrett briefed us on events happening around Harvard.

"The Student Activities Fair starts now and... there'll be our 'Practice Sex' seminar– ooh, I mean our 'Practice Sex SAFELY' seminar. Don't have too much fun. It starts tomorrow at four. They'll most probably give out contraceptive pills, shots and condoms. I recommend that you all go for it since... you know, the freebies. It'll come in handy." Garrett said, looking all awkward on us. "Okay guys, thanks for coming to the Orientation. If you guys need some suggestions on the best places to hang out at or get you guys out of trouble, I think you'd need my number for that."

Garrett started talking about the festivals all year round and vital things to do before leaving Harvard like peeing on the foot of the John Harvard statue and having sex in the Widener Library. We were dismissed in the blink of an eye and he disappeared without a trace.

"So... what are you going to join?" Alice asked me.

I frowned. "I'm not sure. Something, obviously. It just hasn't peaked my interest yet."

We walked and walked around and I was starting to think we were lost.

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" I asked Alice. We stopped at the John Harvard statue where there were Japanese tourists rubbing the foot of the statue for good luck. Wait, isn't that the same foot Garrett said about— Ooh... bad idea.

I spotted someone I knew from a distance and called them over. "Hey! Hey Jasper!"

Alice gasped in shock and anxiety. "No! Maybe he doesn't know the way!"

"Give it a rest, Al." I said.

"Why? What is happening to Alice?" Rosalie suddenly asked.

I faced Rosalie fully. "You see, Alice has a crush on Jasper, our dear neighbor from C 23. She doesn't want to die of embarrassment in front of him." I explained, taking my time as Jasper walked towards us.

"Hey Bella!" Jasper greeted, his blond hair touching one eyebrow to the side. He glanced at Rosalie & Alice. "Well, who are these?"

"Jasper, this is Rosalie Hale." I pointed towards Rose and she waved her thin fingers.

"Bonjour. Nice to meet you." Rosalie smiled.

"This is Alice Brandon," I nudged Alice forward and she let out a squeak.

"Hey there," Jasper smiled at her.

Her eyes turned wide. "Hi." Her voice was an octave higher. She turned around and ran across the green grass happily.

We all stared at her for a few seconds before we continued talking.

"So... why did you call me over?" He asked.

"You know your way around here, don't you?" I asked and he nodded in response. "Good. Well, we're heading for the Activities Fair..."

"Right." He said. "Do you need me to go with you guys or can I just tell you the directions?"

"Directions." I quickly said when Alice came back.

He nodded, pointing north. "Go straight there and you might see a crowd of freshmen like us. Follow them from behind." He told me. "Have you seen Emmett?"

I shook my head. "Rosalie?" I looked at her.

She shrugged. "At those sports clubs maybe."

I looked back at Jasper. "You heard the lady. Thanks."

He waved goodbye to me. "See you soon."

"Ick! OMG how was I NOT with you when you met him?!" Alice whisper-shouted.

I shrugged. "Where were you?"

She rolled her eyes and we headed north. Sure enough, a group of "Froshlings" (normal term for freshmen here in Harvard) were hanging around, laughing. A few metres from them were booths with clubs and society names plastered on each table.

I spent the next half an hour enjoying Alice's keen "research results" and commentary. Rosalie wandered somewhere. I didn't know where she went.

There were a group of guys around our age in black designer suits and Blackberries at the Harvard Business Club.

Alice cracked up when she saw them. "Oh dear, banker boys and their CRACKBERRIES!"

At the International Club, Alice still couldn't stop her commentary. Girls danced in colorful hijab and Middle Eastern music was playing.

"Don't sign up for that one; you might as well put your name on the No Fly list." She said.

"Alice, isn't that a little—"

"I'm serious," she said without a hint of humour in her tone. "I heard from the seniors that they fax their sign up sheet to the CIA."

I rolled my eyes at her.

Alice took a red velvet cupcake from the metallic tin at the Women in Business club. "Look at how they're positioned opposite the Harvard Business Club! They're totally a covert dating club. This Women in Business crap is SO not a real club." She watched as the women were putting on pink lipstick and sitting back on their lawn chairs.

"Seriously," I started. Four of them were wearing bikini tops. "Do they look like they know the difference between NASDAQ and a strawberry daiquiri?"

Alice pursed her lips. "Good point," she said.

After a few minutes, I spotted Edward beside the Harvard squash team advertisement. He was taking a long drag of his cigarette.

I grimaced in disgust. Serious athletes don't smoke.

"Hey, there's Edward Cullen!" Alice exclaimed as if she wanted me to get excited. "I wonder if he's joining that." She pointed at the ad.

"He better not," I muttered. "He probably smokes ten cigs a day."

Alice crossed her arms. "Hey, don't be so evil! What do you hold against him that makes you so cold towards him?" She gasped when she realised something. "Oh my god, he's the one you were talking about!"

I frowned. "Since when did you become so nice to him?"

She froze, then shrugged. "Our dads worked together on a collaboration before for some 'amazing product made by the two giants in business'," She quoted, making me wonder who said that. "We've met twice."

I fidgeted, suddenly feeling so irritated for a reason I didn't know.

"To be honest, he's really hot!" Alice unexpectedly said. "I mean, did you see him carrying boxes SHIRTLESS?"

I remembered that, and cringed. That was the time he embarrassed me in front of Jasper.

"He's hot," I agreed, "but he's an asshole."

"He's an asshole, alright. A sexy one." Alice nodded, smirking at me.

I glared at her. "Shut up!"

"I researched on our other neighbours too. Apparently, Emmett's part of British royalty! Kate's father is the CEO of that electronic company thingy, and Rosalie's a model! Her dad's the French ambassador in America." She gushed.

I stared at her. My worst fears were probably happening now. "You didn't Google me too, did you?" I asked in a low voice.

She cringed, looking somewhere else. "Well, let's just say that your mother is one of Forbes' Top 100 Most Influential People. And that you are of European royalty because you're close relatives with the royal family in Monaco but you live in Washington with your parents. You speak Italian, French, Scottish and German fluently."

I gasped. "Alice!"

"What?" She said. "You don't... exactly have an Italian or French accent or—"

"Alice, I ban you from Googling me." I seethed.

She raised her hands up, surrendering. "Okay, okay! Fine! I promise. Come on! Let's —"

"Hello, ladies." I heard Edward's (annoying) panty-dropping voice say and we both snapped up. He was walking towards us. He smelt like cigarettes.

I crossed my arms, refusing to greet him.

Alice waved. "Hey Edward! How are you? Never got a chance to talk to you yesterday!" She gave him a friendly smile.

"I'm okay." Edward replied in a decent, polite tone.

I mentally purged at his sudden friendliness.

"So what is Boho Chick doing here?" Edward smirked at me.

"Did you make up a nickname for me?" I asked him in disbelief.

He shrugged. "Nickname, probably."

"Are you both going to ignore me like a ghost or what?" Alice huffed.

"Ghosts are ignored when they want to be invisible, Alice." I told her.

She rolled her eyes.

"You're an asshole, you know." I looked back at Edward.

He chuckled. "Not the first time I've heard that."

"Then I wonder why that comment still hasn't sank in that thick skull of yours." I glared. "Come on now, Al. We're leaving."

"I'll see you soon." He said out loud. I grumbled out curses as I walked away from him.

* * *

It's not the first time I've ever gotten flames. Well, this is after all a story of humor. And... THERE'S GONNA BE A FRENCH TRANSLATION OF THE STORY! Whoop! Thanks to my favorite girl of the day, Baby's Bell, there will be the French one coming out soon.

Any questions? Review!

Scarlett


	7. Chapter 7

"Who the hell does he think he is? Annoying asshole." I grumbled.

I was walking around alone. Alice wandered away from me, like Rosalie. A group of freshmen girls glared at me as I walked away. I recognised them. They were Edward's "fanclub". It was amazing how fast that club was created in just two days. They could probably just take a week to finish a one-page assignment, though.

"Hey you," I heard one of the girls call out to me. A blonde was grimacing her plastic face at me. "Who do you think you are? Edward is _so_ not interested in you. He's just going to dump you after he fucks you." Her nasally voice sounded like claws on a chalkboard.

"It's good you know what would happen," I replied, "so why are you still waiting for him if you know how much of a manwhore he is?"

They were taken aback by my words.

"I'm glad I've pulled you all out of the water. The feelings between me & him are mutual. We just hate each other. If you're still waiting for him, you don't have to see me as a threat." I told them.

I walked away from them as they were deep in thought. I chuckled when they dispersed. They all obviously had different views on that question, but I'd bet some of them finally saw my side of everything.

It was lunch already, and I managed to find my way to the dining hall. I found that everyone were in groups. There were the the intellectuals, international kids, the ones that got in here because of their "generosity" and the ones that came in by scholarships.

I couldn't help but feel pity when I saw Rosalie sitting all alone on the internationals table, fiddling with her caesar's salad. She sighed silently with her head resting in her hand.

I went to get my tray of food first — mac and cheese — and walked towards her.

She looked up at me and smiled lazily. "What are you doing here?" She asked in French. I decided to make it easier for her, so I replied to her in French too.

"Alice ran away, Edward dissed me, and his horrible group of fangirls tried to gang up against me. I knocked some sense into their useless pretty heads." I chuckled.

She frowned, dropping her fork. "I'm pretty sure I've seen you somewhere."

"Of course you've seen me somewhere. We live in the same dorm," I rolled my eyes.

She gasped. "Aren't you the—"

"Bonjour," I heard someone greet in French. Our heads snapped up.

It was a blonde, but she didn't look like any normal blonde. She was petite and short, but still a little taller than Alice. Her silky hair ended halfway behind her back. She wore a bold pink lip gloss and the rest of her makeup was natural.

She wore a branded light blue dress that complemented her slightly tanned skin. She had a simple black headband on her head and she wore ballet flats with the iconic Chanel logo on them.

"Do we know you?" Rosalie asked in the same language. I noted that she had a small group of followers behind her, eyeing us with envy. I didn't understand why.

"No, but I know you both." She said, this time in English. She held her hand out. "I'm Jane Heathrow, editor of Fifteen Minutes magazine."

"Fifteen Minutes? You mean the school magazine?" I asked, shaking hands.

She smiled a child-like smile. "Yes. I'm also a junior here. Well, welcome to Harvard University. We're glad to have you both here. After all, how many times do we even have real European royalty in our school? I too respect your father's contributions to society, Rosalie."

I looked to Rosalie, who lips curled up in distaste, staring at her salad. I didn't think she was doing that to Jane. I didn't understand why she didn't like Jane at all.

I looked back at Jane and smiled. "Well, thank you."

She handed me a business card with her name on it and the magazine logo. "Here. I'd love to do an interview with you soon. Call me when you are ready."

I placed it on the table and she frowned for a second that I almost didn't catch it. Her smile appeared again, although not as genuine as before's.

"I am sure you have things to attend to, so I shall leave you with Rosalie here. Goodbye." She said, then walked away.

"Bye..." I said a little too late. Her followers were quick to catch up with her. They tried to grab her attention and they reminded me so much of Edward's "fanclub".

Rosalie was muttering vulgarities in French.

"What's the matter? Do you hate your salad?" I asked her, talking in French again.

She shook her head. "Aren't you going to eat your food? It'll get cold."

She sounded a whole lot more different than when she was talking in English. She made more sense to me in French than English. It was probably because she was naturally stronger in French and she had difficulty in phrasing words together in English.

I stabbed the macaroni together, four in a row and ate on them.

"You're the Duchessa of Monaco, aren't you?" She asked silently. "I saw you in magazines before. Not only magazines, newspapers too. It's not hard to not recognise you."

I frowned. "Yeah, but I don't like making the headlines even if I'm a blue blood. My parents placed a ban against the paparazzi ever since I was born. They couldn't take any picture of me unless I was out at an important event."

"My father has met your mother before." She told me. "She's the Princess, isn't she?"

I nodded. "She and my cousins are princesses. I have that title in my name too, but my rightful title is to be the Duchess."

We didn't talk after that and focused on eating. After that, we continued walking around the Fair.

"Are you even interested in Emmett?" I asked her. "Because he does, and it's very rare that he woos someone."

She sighed, shaking her head. "Not interested in him. Yes, we've slept together two nights ago but it was only a one-night stand," she told me honestly.

Her usual smile faded when she saw someone. "Oh look, it's Edward."

I looked at where she saw him and I rolled my eyes, chuckling. Seemed like a few of his "fanclub" hadn't changed their minds about him yet. He was busy entertaining them all of them at the same time but it seemed that most of them were greedy bitches. They tried to grab Edward's attention like Jane's "fanclub".

Edward saw me and gave me a sexy smirk, making me wonder what he was talking about to the girls. Whatever he told them were lies, probably.

I shoved the middle finger in his face and he laughed. I could hear him say "my kind of girl" or something.

The girls looked behind to glare at me.

"Fuck you," I spat. He laughed.

The girls looked away from me, gossiping quietly into each other's ears.

"You've grabbed the asshole's attention," Rosalie stated in her French-English accent.

I snorted. "Yeah right. He's just trying to ruin my life, though."

"Why don't you try dating him?" She asked.

I shook my head. "No fucking way."

When she mentioned dating, my mind immediately went to Jacob. We haven't talked today. It was possible that he was still busy moving in and all. It was the second day of college, but I still had to talk to him one way or another.

**From: Isabella Swan  
To: Jacob Black**

**WHERE ARE YOU?**

**Bella**

I emailed him. I quickly sent it to his email address and slipped my cell back into my pockets.

* * *

So where do you think Jacob went? Leave your thoughts below!

And about the mix-up of chapters, (if you guys hadn't realised, that's from my other story) it's happened _twice_. It's a very recent problem and I think there's something wrong with FFN. I never had that problem before and I'm very sure I updated the correct chapter but it was wrong. Sorry.

Scarlett


	8. Chapter 8

**From: Jacob Black  
To: Isabella Swan**

**Hey babe. How's it going? I've been busy with a lot of stuff. I have tryouts on football and studies, so I don't think I have the time. It's not you, it's me.**

**Jake**

* * *

**From: Isabella Swan  
To: Jacob Black**

**Wait... did you just break up with me?**

**Bella**

* * *

**From: Jacob Black  
To: Isabella Swan**

**Oh shucks. I really don't know how to do this sorta thing. Sorry, Bells.**

**Jake**

* * *

**From: Isabella Swan  
Forward to: Alice Brandon**

**WHAT THE FUCK? Oh my god! Can you believe he just did that? OVER EMAIL?**

**Bella**

* * *

**From: Alice Brandon  
To: Isabella Swan**

**OMGGG. THAT IS SOOOO MESSED UP! PUNCH HIM IN THE GUT WHEN YOU SEE HIM DURING THE HOLIDAYS!**

**Alice**

* * *

"Yes, Alice." I muttered down to the phone as I read her reply. "I will."

Alice was out buying groceries for the kitchen. I still couldn't get over the shock that Jacob broke up with me. Over email. It's at least better than a text message... right? But of course, it was worse than a phone call.

I threw my phone on my bed and went into the living room, sprawled on the couch. I was too tired to do anything. I just came back from the Fair and it was still going on. Rosalie was in her room, having her facials done.

Sure, I was bummed that Jacob broke up with me. He was my best friend. I could tell him anything but it was over already.

There were raps on the door, making me jolt out of my thoughts. It was such a quiet afternoon that I was scared out of my wits.

I slowly raised from the couch and walked towards the door. Opening it, I stared at the person.

"Hey Bella," he half-waved. "Is Alice in?"

I widely smiled unknowingly, but it quickly disappeared. "Hey Jasper. Alice isn't in. I'll tell her you were looking. Anything else?"

He pointed with his thumb towards the Wigglesworth dorm exit. "There's a tennis match. It's between Edward and one of his tennis mates. Do you wanna watch?"

Watching Edward and shouting that he sucked in the crowd? Yeah, why not?

I grinned mischievously. "I'm in. Come on in. I'll be ready in five."

He sat down on the couch, observing the living room. Dog-eared Vogue magazines were stacked on the table. The ice box was placed at the corner beside the television. There was even an Xbox, Nintendo Wii, the latest Playstation and a DVD player. There were high-quality speakers at both sides of the hanging LCD HD smart TV.

"Good god, you girls basically have a bachelor pad." He commented.

"The Playstation and Nintendo's mine. The Xbox Kinect belongs to my roommate Kate. The TV and speakers were installed by Alice." I told him.

His mouth was hung wide open. I closed it shut for him and laughed. "I'm going to change now. Don't touch the toys."

I changed from my singlet and shorts into my sleeveless black shirt dress and it made my recently-painted tribal-themed nails stand out with its bold colours. I tied my leather-braided headband around my head and placed it on my shoulders, its green, blue and red feathers hanging. I threw on a pair of Aztec-patterned leggings and nude peep-toe pumps.

I didn't even bother to put any makeup but black mascara and blusher. I walked out with my rattan-braided purse. He stared, dazed at the electronic items in the living room. He jumped in shock when I tapped his shoulder.

"Come on, let's go." I told him. "I'll let you and the guys play with them on one condition: don't tell Edward we have this and don't bring him over."

He grinned. "Can do, ma'am."

"Let's go. I'm sure you know your way down to the tennis court. I'm still lost." I chuckled.

He led me to a big tennis court with lights shining down on it since it was twilight. The sky was a really dark shade of blue and the trees were black against it.

I saw Edward and his opponent playing against each other. Sweat formed on his forehead as he focused on the game. He moved swiftly as he hit the tennis ball to the other side. I couldn't see his opponent's face, though.

I sat down on the empty benches provided and watched intensely. Jasper brought snacks and handed me a straight-out-of-the-oven chocolate Pop Tart.

"Thanks! I haven't eaten this in days!" I exclaimed. "I eat Pop Tarts when I study. I like working like that."

"Hey, me too!" He said in surprise. "Oh god, we should study together. I'll bring the chocolate ones and you bring whatever flavour you have."

When Jasper said that, I felt a pair of eyes burning through the back of my head. I heard a guy exclaim happily and a groan.

"Alec versus Edward! Three to two!" Edward's opponent grinned smugly.

Edward's opponent was dashing in his own way. He had dark brown hair that was perfectly trimmed, familiar blue eyes and a child-like smile. He was 6"2 and lean, but perfectly fit like Edward.

"And Edward loses. Yay!" I shouted happily. He glared at me as he walked towards Jasper & I.

His jaw hardened when he literally looked down at me. He was breathing heavily. "What the hell are you doing here?" He asked in a soft tone, but his words were tough as steel.

I smiled innocently. "Why, to see you lose of course!"

I heard footsteps coming our way and my eyes glanced at Edward's opponent. He held his hand out when he was close to us.

"Hello there. I'm Alec." He introduced himself.

I frowned. "Are you Jane—"

"Jane's brother?" He interrupted my sentence as if he's heard that for all his life. "Yeah. Her twin brother, actually. Alec Heathrow at your service." He cheekily smiled.

"So you're a upperclassman like her too. I'm Bella, by the way." I took his hand and shook it. He squeezed it softly, flirting.

Edward saw that small little gesture and growled. "Alec, I'm going back."

He walked away from us, approaching two tennis bags and grabbed the blue one. He made his way back to the dorm.

"Jeez, why is he so rough?" I grimaced.

"I don't know either. He hates you, if that isn't obvious enough." Jasper shrugged. "He hates it when Emmett & I mention your name."

"He's not always like that," Alec told us. "I've known him since I was thirteen. He's a mischievous kid. He's surprisingly really outgoing," he looked at me. "I wonder what is it about you that ticks him off."

"Yeah," I agreed. "I totally wonder why."

"Maybe it's because you're too beautiful." Alec commented, making me flush. I was easily affected by small compliments, but Jacob was still on my mind.

_YOU GUYS HAVE ALREADY BROKEN UP_, my inner voice screams and throws her phone across the bedroom she made in my brain. _GIVE IT UP, BITCH._

I stood up. "You know what, it's time for us to go back. Maybe I'll see you soon. It was great meeting you."

Jasper stood up after I did and gathered up his bag.

"It was," Alec said. "How about your number? Maybe you can text me or something."

I chucked nervously. "Uhm... sure." I told him my cellphone number and he snapped out his phone, typing my number away on it.

He shook it in his hand. "Done. I'll text you soon."

"Alright. Bye." I waved as he walked towards the remaining green tennis bag and walked away. He glanced at me from behind two times and I kept on waving at him when he looked.

"Wait until Edward hears about this," Jasper muttered.

"No!" I looked at him. "You will not tell him that! You tell him that and you will not get to play with the Xbox and Wii!"

He huffed. "Fine. Oh, and when we come over, there must be beer and junk food."

"No fucking way." I shook my head.

He took out his phone and started typing on it. "I'm telling him now..." He said.

"You're lying," I said quickly out of panic.

He shook his head. "Oh no I'm not." He showed me his screen and I could see Edward's name on the screen. Jasper already typed out everything, but he hadn't sent it yet. "I'm giving you five seconds to say yes. Five... four..."

I struggled. I didn't know why I had this feeling to not tell Edward about his friend getting my number. My brain was scattered around the place.

"Three... two..."

"Yes!" I replied angrily. "Fine! Beers and snacks. But you have to pay us back!"

He placed his finger near the "send" button.

"Okay, okay! We'll pay and you don't have to pay back! But you obviously owe us!" I told him.

He grinned. "I'm sure we'll be happy to help with anything."


	9. Chapter 9

"Where have you been?" Alice asked, hugging a leather cushion on the couch.

I smiled. "Out. Within hours of Jacob breaking up with me, I just so happened to give my number to a cute guy."

Alice widened her eyes. "Deets! Now!"

"So, Jasper actually came by just now..." I told her.

She gasped. "OMG! Why was he here?"

"He asked for you." I replied.

She stared at me. "You're lying."

I laughed. "Come on! Do you think I'd lie to you?"

"We've only known each other for two days! Of course I'm having doubts about you!" She said. "But you've got to tell me what you said to him."

I rolled my eyes, letting her doubts slide. "I told him that you weren't in. He then asked me whether I wanted to watch Edward & his friend play tennis. I said yes and we went out to the tennis court. Edward lost and I met his friend.

"Do you know Jane Heathrow of Fifteen Minutes magazine?" I asked her.

She nodded excitedly. "Yes! She's the editor! Oh my god, I love her!"

"Guess what?" I pursed my lips. "Edward's friend turns out to be Jane's brother Alec. We flirted and Edward became angry that he left first."

She gasped again. "Oh my god! Major shocker! He must be jealous... Holy shit!"

I froze. "What?"

She squealed so loud my ears were about to burst. "Edward likes you!"

My eyes turned wide and I shook my head fast. "No way! No fucking way! He's just mad that I came to see him fail... right?"

"He's mad because he wants you to see that he always wins so that you will fall for him and you guys will live happily ever after! Aw!" She gave me those eyes filled with love and hope.

"No! No!" I whined. "Can we please go back to the story?"

She huffed. "Fine."

"Alec said that Edward probably left because I was too beautiful." I flushed at that part and hid my face.

Alice crossed her arms. "I still think Edward is perfect for you."

"Gosh Alice. When did you start thinking that?" I groaned.

"Just a few minutes ago. Everything suddenly just... clicked! The instant fights since the first day, the tension, the awkwardness... It all just clicks! I feel like I'm in a freaking movie!" She squealed.

"Shut up!" I told her. "Anyways, he asked for my number—"

"Whatthefuckever you do, don't go on a date with Alec Heathrow! Stick with Edward!" She continued.

"Jasper was in here and he kept on staring at the Xbox and all and I made a deal with him that he can play with them." I blurted out.

That shut her up about Edward. "Oh my god! He can play with me anytime," She purred.

"Good. That'll shut you up about Edward. I'll let you fantasize about Jasper while I change back."

"Well, we'll still talk about Edward... but I sure can't help it when it comes to cowboys with accents." She blushed.

I rolled my eyes, pushing myself off the couch and into my room.

I changed back into my singlet and short-shorts. I spent half an hour in the room on my laptop until I heard voices outside in the living room. I opened the door and found Jasper & Emmett on the couch, holding my Xbox controllers.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I asked.

Their heads snapped back, their grins infectious. "Hey Bella!" Emmett waved. "Great place you got here!"

Alice came out with our cooler of beer and had bags of potato chips in her arms. I stared at her and glared at Jasper.

He shrugged. "I didn't ask for them but Emmett did."

"And you let her do it all alone?" I asked. "You're such a bastard!"

"Hey, hey, hey!" Emmett had his arms wide. "Don't hate on him. Alice kept on refusing his help."

"I don't need any help, 'kay?" Alice spoke up. "Give it a rest, Bella."

I huffed, folding my arms. "Emmett, if you're looking for Rosalie, she's in her room. Go say hi to her."

He immediately stood up and placed the controller away. "What is she doing?"

I shrugged. "The last I checked which was hours ago, facials."

He sat back down. "Then maybe I shouldn't check on her."

At least he had manners unlike a certain cocky bronze-haired god.

I smiled. "Good. What game do you want to play? I've got GTA, Call of Duty, Barbie & The Horse-Riding Adventures and many more. You guys can play the Kinect too, if you'd like to. You know what, play Barbie. That's fun."

"Aw Bella, don't mock us, cousin." Emmett said.

I rolled my eyes. "Kidding. You guys are such big babies."

The Xbox finished loading and I could see the game they were going to start playing— Grand Theft Auto Five.

"Your parents would kill you if they see you play this." I told Emmett.

He grinned a boyish grin, dimples on both of his cheeks. "I know, dear cousin. Just wait until your mother looks at your dorm. It's not fit for a duchess."

I rolled my eyes. "Shut up."

Jasper stared at Emmett. "Duchess? Who's the duchess?"

"Haven't you done your research on your neighbours, Jasper?" Alice asked. "Bella here is Principessa Isabella Marie Swan, Duchess of Monaco."

I covered my face in embarrassment. "Shut up shut up shut up! I know, I know."

"Well, you don't sound Italian," Jasper said.

"That's what Alice said too," I replied. "Look guys, I don't want you to give me & Emmett the royal treatment because in the end, we're just people. Don't look at us like we're special.

"My mother is one of the Princesses of Monaco and she met my father who's a businessman. They got married and they had... me." I shrugged. "I visit Monaco twice every few months since it's my country."

"I'm related to her since one of her mother's sisters married my father and had me," Emmett spoke up, then paused. "Okay, fine. So we're not so distant relatives."

I smiled, shrugging it off. "Just... we're gonna stop talking about our bloodlines. The game's waiting for you to start."

The guys played all night with the Xbox until Alice & I gave up and went to bed.

"Don't worry, little sis," Emmett told me. "We'll lock the door when we go back."

"Good. I don't want any pervs or stalkers climbing in." I joked. "Alright, I'm going in now. Don't mess anything up."

The guys vowed on their lives and I chuckled. Walking back in, I curled up under the sheets. A few minutes later, I suddenly heard the door click open and I first thought it was Emmett. The lights were out. I couldn't see clearly without my contacts.

"Emmett?" I groaned. "What do you want? I wanna sleep."

He just kept quiet, but chuckled. I recognised whose voice it was, but I didn't act on throwing him out. I was too tired to move.

He came closer and sat on the bed, an inch away from me. I tried closing my eyes, hoping it was all just a dream.

"What are you doing here?" I asked softly.

"I heard about the deal you & Jasper made. Sorry about that." He whispered. "I'm not supposed to know about the 'bachelor pad' here and I'm not supposed to come over."

"Who told you about it?" I asked.

"No one did. I was looking for the guys. I just thought I'd ask you girls about them. Emmett answered the door and he let me in. He didn't know about the deal you & Jasper made." He explained.

I groaned. "That big gorilla."

He chuckled. "So do you want me out?"

I shook my head. "If you were more like this to me, I would've actually liked you. More... friendly. More... genuine and kind."

"I've been too harsh on you, haven't I?" I could see the curve of his lip go upwards, smirking. His smirk was gone, all humour gone. "I'm sorry about that, but it's nice hearing positive things about me from you."

I pushed his chest away, failing miserably at it. "You're such a cocky bastard." I laughed.

He took my hand that was pushing against him and held it to his chest. I could feel his heart thumping hard and fast, obviously beating faster than usual.

I gasped silently and my mind was more awake. I didn't know why his heart was beating fast, but something told me I did. And it was me. I was the cause of why it was beating harder than usual.

I shook my head. This had to be a dream. This wasn't actually real. It couldn't. I clamped my eyes shut.

"Duchessa," he whispered in my ear, sending shivers down my spine.

My gasp was more audible now. He called me by my title. He knew.

"Duchessa, you are so beautiful." He told me. "You are so so beautiful."

He traced his fingers along my lips and his touch sent electrical sparks through my whole body.

"Duchessa..." He said. I swear to god he'll be the death of me. "Bella, I can't stay away from you anymore."

My breaths turned shallow when I heard what he said.

"Bella, I... love you. I love you. I need you... I want you..." He whispered in my ear.

"Edward," I said and his eyes snapped up to mine that opened. "Edward, kiss me."

He complied and the sparks just flew and went out of control. His lips were so soft and tasted like mint. His tongue thrusted into my mouth urgently yet oh so softly. My fingers reached up to his soft silky copper-coloured hair and tugged onto it. His hands were on my bare hips.

He was addictive and mesmerising and enchanting and alluring... there were so many more words to describe it, but even if I added them all up, they still wouldn't show how amazing he was.

And it was all just a dream.

* * *

Yes... HAHAHAH! It was all just a dream! Anyhoo, I went through some deep thinking and I figured that this needs to be a T-rated story. Yes, Bella may be "immature" (come on, most of us are immature when we fight with our enemies), but it's a story about humour! Lighten up! So, I figured the story would be for a more appropriate audience (I will cancel out all lemons IMMEDIATELY!) and it goes to the teenagers!

And, there won't be a chapter in Edward's point of view. Unless I think it's a good idea.

Don't hate me,

Scarlett


	10. Chapter 10

That dream continued to haunt me.

Even when I woke up in the middle of Edward & I kissing in the dream, I'd go back to sleep and find the dream replaying over and over. It was very hard not to ignore the fact that I was kissing him, let alone attracted to him. I told myself that I was going to avoid him at all costs.

The next day, Alice dragged me out to the 'Practice Sex Safely' seminar that Garrett told us about the day before.

"Why the hell do we have to go for this?" I asked.

"Because this is college." She simply replied. "You didn't see this in your high school, did you?"

"I went to a private academy, not—"

"Oh right," she said, "I forgot you were in a private academy in Alaska and only go back home to Washington by helicopter during the weekends."

Damn Wikipedia.

"You're such a stalker." I commented.

"But I'm not." She replied. "I'm just curious."

"Have you heard of that metaphor 'curiosity killed the cat'? Yeah. Sometimes when you dig in a little too far, you get in serious trouble." I told her.

She rolled her eyes. "Never took you for the action movie chick."

"I'm not, but I watch enough of them to know what they're talking 'bout." I said, then paused. "There's another reason why we're here, isn't there?"

She took two goodie bags and passed one to me. "Well, no." She denied.

She pulled me to the second front row and made us sit in the middle. I immediately rummaged through the goodie bag and took out every item.

"A box of contraceptive pills... condoms... brochures?" I frowned, staring at the cartoon of a baby on it with its big red words "How To Prevent Pregnancies" written on the top. I shrugged, then placed it on my lap along with the other items taken out. "They seriously think fridge magnets will remind us to be safe?" I asked Alice.

She shrugged. "The way humans work even when they know certain things don't work."

"Why contraceptive pills? I mean, don't you need to go to the doctor then you can get these?"

"The box only has like thirty pills or something. Of course, if you have certain allergies then you can't take them." She replied.

I stuffed the things back into the bag and heard Jasper.

"Ladies, it's nice to see you here," Jasper drawled.

Alice grinned, shaking the bag in his face. "Just taking precautions."

I looked behind Jasper and saw the person I was avoiding. Edward.

"What the hell is he doing here?" I snarled in a low voice in Alice's ear. She ignored me.

"May we sit next to you?" Jasper asked Alice.

She flushed. "Of course!"

I hid my face when Edward looked at Alice. I was just directly beside her, so he could still see me when he was looking at her.

My hands apparently couldn't do the job.

"What's Boho Chick doing here?" Edward asked out loud.

"She has the same intentions as mine," Alice answered for me, "we're taking precautions."

"Uh, no." I said.

She pinched my jean-clad thigh and I jumped in my seat. "Ow! What was that for?"

She glared at me.

"Fine! Okay! We're taking precautions! I'm taking precautions! Dude!" I glared back at Alice and she was smiling again.

Jasper and Edward sat next to us, Jasper sitting next to Alice and Edward beside him. We were sitting on opposite ends of our little group.

The turnout was large. I assumed everyone came just for the freebies, since they were on their phones.

Some lecturer was talking about alternative ways to prevent horrible circumstances from happening when Alice looked at me. "Hey, you don't need this, do you?"

"Well... I uh... You're the one who dragged me—"

"Wait, you don't need this. You're a virgin. Totes forgot about that." She took my goodie bag as she said that out loud. Students our row, the rows in front of us and behind us stared at me when Alice said I was a virgin.

"Alice, I'm strangling you later!" I whispered at her.

She had her innocent look on her face. "What did I do?"

"I want to punch you in the face but I can't!" I hissed. "Ugh!" I covered my face in my lap.

I got bored and stood up, not bothering if Alice was staring at me.

"Bella, where are you going?" She tugged on my bag.

"Back. I'll text you later." I replied. I walked back off to my dorm, slamming the door closed. I threw my bag on my bed and just when I was about to give up going out altogether, my cell beeped.

**Hey Bella, it's me Alec. From last night? Told you I'd text you. :) Alec**

I almost forgot about Alec and quickly saved his number. Instead of replying him through SMS, I called him up.

He instantly picked up. "Hey there."

"Uhm, hi." I greeted. "Do you wanna go out for coffee or something?"

His response was almost immediate. "Sure. When?"

"How about now?" I asked. "Fetch me from my dorm. We'll go to the Starbucks around here."

I could hear his smile through the phone. "I'll be there in five."

"Great!" I replied. "See you later."

I hung up and went to the bathroom, reapplying my makeup again— a nude lip gloss and some blush. I heard the raps on the door and grabbed my sling bag.

I opened the door and saw Alec standing in front of me, a small smile on his face. He cleaned up well— a woolen Harvard sweater over a collared shirt and cotton khaki pants. He wore polished dark shoes and had a camera bag on his shoulder.

I hugged him tightly and smiled. "Thanks for coming."

"You're welcome." He replied. "Starbucks?"

"Totally."

We walked towards Starbucks, students whispering around us. I caught a few words from some of them.

"...dating Alec Heathrow right now? Hot damn..." One girl said to her circle of friends.

"...OMG, are they, like, a new 'it' couple? To be honest, I think she looks better with..." Another girl whispered to her plaid-shirt friend.

Alec caught me eavesdropping. "You okay?" He gave me a soothing smile.

"Uhm... yeah. I'm fine." I replied, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

His mouth went closer to my ear. "Don't listen to everyone. Gossips can only get very far, but can be false."

"Touché," I grinned.

He pulled a chair out for me and I sat down, murmuring a thank you. He placed his camera bag on the table.

"So what do you want?" He asked.

"Iced chocolate with whip cream." I replied. "And a banana muffin."

I grabbed my purse and handed him a twenty, but he pushed it away. "I'll pay. It's a date, a guy has to."

"I'll pay you back," I told him.

He shook his head, chuckling. "There's no need for such hassle, Bella."

He walked off to the counter, queuing behind two persons. I stared at the camera bag and got curious, so I took the camera out.

It was an expensive blood red camera, like those digital SLRs. I screened through the pictures— some of them were of greenery, others were of his sister Jane and his friends.

"Enjoying the pics?" Alec suddenly said.

I almost jumped off my seat and hit my elbow against the metal chair. I looked up at Alec in panic and guilt. "I didn't mean to look without permission! I'm so sorry!"

He laughed it off, placing my banana muffin, my drink and a mug of normal coffee on the table. "It's alright. You into photography?"

"Not really." I told him, picking up the monster-sized muffin and biting into it. It had a soft, spongy texture, the heat billowing off it. I moaned at its perfection.

Alec sat down on his chair and chuckled. He took his camera and surprised me by snapping a shot of me and the banana muffin.

I dropped the muffin on its plate as I stared at him in shock.

He pursed his lips apologetically. "Sorry. It's just that you were having a moment with the muffin there."

I recovered and shook my head. "That's okay."

He showed me the picture. "It actually turned out really great."

He was right. I've always hated the camera for its bad habit of making people look fat, but in this shot I was smiling down on the already-bitten muffin. I looked... really good in the picture.

"How did you do that?" I asked him. "That's amazing!"

His ears turned pink upon my compliment. "Thanks. You just have to pour your soul into the camera, that's all. It will turn out the way you want it to be."

"How long have you been taking pictures?" I asked.

"Since I was sixteen. My mother gave me my very first camera and I spent a lot of time with it. That camera taught me how to take soulful pictures." He replied with a wistful smile.

"What happened to it?" I asked.

"Uhm... someone broke it. We got into a fight and he deliberately pushed it off my hands." He said.

"Oh." I just said. "Sorry."

"Sorry about what?" Jane said, looking over at us as she stood beside our table.

Alec flinched a little out of shock and looked up at her. "Hello Jane."

She smiled. "Hey brother. Seems like you have already met one of our most exclusive European royalties in Harvard!"

"Wait, you're a royal?" Alec looked at me.

I pursed my lips. "Well, yeah."

"The Duchess of Monaco, to be exact." Jane told him. "Hello Isabella. Wait, is it alright if I call you by name? I wouldn't want to upset you."

"Call me Bella," I said.

Jane intimidated me just by her presence alone. She was looking at me, making sure I lived up to her expectations.

"Am I interrupting something?" Jane just realised.

"Nothing much. Alec & I were just having drinks. No big deal." I waved her off.

"It is a big deal. I'm so sorry for interrupting! I was just looking for my assistant who was supposed to bring me coffee, then I saw both of you! I should probably leave now," she said. Her story didn't seem genuine. "Goodbye!"

"That was unexpected," I said.

Alec smiled at me, but suddenly his smile didn't reach to his eyes. It was probably because of Jane's visit. He lifted his camera up again.

"You don't mind if I take another photo of you, do you?" He asked.

"No, of course not." I replied.

His camera blocked the majority of his face, only leaving his recognisable smile. "Look to your right and smile, as if I'm not here."

I complied. I was looking at the entrance of Starbucks and saw Emmett walk in. My smile turned real as I waved excitedly.

I heard the shutter of the camera and Alec went to put it down. He looked at where I was looking at and frowned. "You know Prince Emmett McCarty?"

"He's my cousin." I shrugged. Emmett saw me and waved towards me too. He hurriedly walked to me and lifted me off the chair, spinning me around the small space. People stared at our exchange.

"Hey lil' sis!" He said. "What are you doing here?"

He put me down and the world seemed tilted for a second. "Coffee date." I simply replied.

"With who?"

I looked at Alec. "With Alec Heathrow here."

Emmett looked at Alec with scrutiny. "You don't look like a freshman."

Alec stood up and shook his hand. "I'm not. I'm a junior here. Welcome to Harvard."

Emmett gave him a big smile. "Thanks, lad. Coffee date, huh? You're her boyfriend?"

Alec shook his head. "Just a friend."

Emmett rolled his eyes. "Everyone says that. Well, you've got yourself a catch, sis. He seems like a nice guy. Should probably tell Edward you're taken now."

I choked on my iced chocolate drink. "What the hell?"

Emmett grimaced. "Shouldn't have said that." He said, then changed the subject. Clapping his hands together, he gave me an awkward smile. "You don't mind if Jasper & I come over again tonight, do you?"

"As long as you don't tell him about what the girls and I have in the dorm. And he's not allowed in there." I told Emmett.

"Aye aye, captain." He gave me a salute and I saluted back at him. He walked away and Alec & I sat back in our seats.

"What's in your dorm?" Alec asked.

"You caught that, huh? Just... game controllers. A lot of them." I shrugged.

We continued to talk for another two hours and when he walked me back to my dorm, we arranged for another coffee date two days later. We said our goodbyes and I entered the dorm with a big smile on my face. Although spending time with Alec did put my mind off certain things, my dream about Edward couldn't be forgotten.

* * *

Okay, so there might be a little situation between Alec & Bella, but that's just temporary stuff. Eventually, Bella will end up with Edward. Alec's just a little distraction.

Questions?

Scarlett


	11. Chapter 11

My face turned glum the moment I saw Alice.

"Where have you been?" Alice asked. I ignored her. "You told me you'll text me!"

I went to my room and slammed the door in her face.

"Bella, talk to me!" Alice whined. "Is it because of just now? I'm sorry for accidentally say it out loud, 'kay? I word-vomit a lot."

I sighed, throwing my bag on my bed and opened the door. "Fine. I forgive you."

"So where did you go?"

"Just came back from a date. Nothing much." I replied.

"With Alec Heathrow?" She asked. "Bella, you can't be serious."

"Why do you oppose him so much? Is it because he's not Edward?" I sarcastically said.

"What is it with you & Edward? Why can't you guys just make up and be friends?" She asked me.

"Because we can _never_ ever make up. I won't allow that happening." I replied.

"Why will you not listen to me? Why are you so against him?" She asked, her second question coming out in a soft whisper.

"I don't like people interfering with my love life and I sure as hell make the decisions since it's my love life." I told her.

"Then why are you against Edward?" She asked again.

I sighed. "I just... I don't like him. At all." I lied. "And I will never like him at all. He's such an arrogant bastard."

"He isn't." Alice insisted. "I promise you that he isn't. He's sensitive and... and kind and helpful and friendly and he's the most amazing person you will ever meet in life.

"Bella, you have to understand. I've never had an older sibling in my life. I'm the oldest between me and my sister Cynthia. I've always wanted an older brother that I could... have a friendly fight with. Borrow his girlfriend's shoes. Know all his secrets so that I could sabotage him with if he hurts me and my parents would ground him for a month," Alice chuckled. "Edward is all that to me even if we've known each other for months, but I guess that what I'm missing in him is borrowing his girlfriend's shoes."

"Okay, so you want me to date him so that you can borrow my shoes?" I raised my eyebrows. "Alice, you can just ask me if you want to borrow any of mine."

She shut her eyes and sighed. "You don't get it. Edward is good for you, and I know you're good for him too."

"Okay..." I stretched the only word that came out of my mouth out and focused on something else.

She pursed her lips, eyes opened again. "Okay. I would just leave you to your thoughts, but I'm not going to. Enough with the heavy! Jasper asked me out when Edward left and we're going to have dinner tomorrow night!"

I smiled. "That's nice. You've got anything to wear?"

Her smile faded. "Thing is, I take a long time to figure out what to wear. Like for these clothes that I'm wearing right now, I actually planned my outfits out last week. I can't do last-minute."

"Why don't you tell Jasper to make it next week, then? He'll understand." I told her.

She shook her head hard. "No! I don't want to make him wait. It wouldn't be fair for him." She sighed, as if she was worried and said, "Bella, help me."

"Uhm... yeah. Sure." I replied, and she pulled me into her bedroom

* * *

"So... if you want any takeout just text me. I'm going to ride Jasper's car so if you need a ride, my keys are on my bedside table. Otherwise, you're good and I'll be heading out." Alice told me when Jasper was already at the door, waiting for her to go. She waved a small goodbye at me and I closed the door smiling.

"Have fun guys," I told them. "Jasper, you better treat her good."

Jasper chuckled, tipping his invisible cowboy hat as he bowed his head towards me. "Aye, Miss Bella."

They left in an instant and I closed the door, I sighed when I realised I was all alone. Rosalie was out doing who-the-fuck-knows-what, and Kate found other geeks and hung out with them. I had the dorm to myself. Just me, myself, and the huge smart TV that I was going to spend time with going on YouTube and watching cat videos enlarged on the television. I was going to be forever alone, and I guess I didn't mind that.

Or did I? Maybe. Maybe not. I had to stop questioning myself.

I rolled my eyes at myself and turned off the television. I wasn't in the mood for cat videos anymore. Instead, I took out my Romeo & Juliet book and sprawled over the three-seater couch, reading silently until I heard raps on the door.

I gave out a huff and it was probably Alice forgetting something or my other roommates who have probably lost their keys. I opened the door without hesitation and was shell-shocked to see him standing there, pacing.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" I asked.

* * *

Well, short chapter. I know. But whatever. I decided to post this one, and I would really like to hear who you all think was at the door and why he/she was there! It'll be interesting...

Scarlett


	12. Chapter 12

Edward looked up at me. His eyes expressed reluctance and worry. It was the first time I had ever seen him like that. He muttered, "Bella, well, obviously I'm not welcomed."

I rolled my eyes. "Took you long enough to realise that, huh?"

"Well, I'm... uh... sorry for being so mean to you and all." He rubbed the back of his neck.

"And what brought this on?" I asked him. I didn't understand why he would apologise. What was wrong with him?

He ran his hand through his unruly bronze hair and closed his eyes for a second, pursing his lips. "I'm just... I'm sorry."

I rolled my eyes, knowing that there was a reason why. "Apology accepted."

I was about to closed the door when I heard him call my name again. "Wait," he said.

I opened my door again and tried to smile pleasantly. I didn't want to be around him for too long. "Yes?" I said through my teeth.

"I... heard that your boyfriend broke up with you. Are you okay?" He asked.

Oh my god. Edward Cullen— douche-bag extraordinaire & cocky bastard— was asking me how I was doing after Jacob dumped me. And I realised no one else did.

Fuck.

"I think I'm fine." I whispered. "Thanks for asking."

"If you need anything, I'm here." He told me.

Before my responding words could be filtered to prevent situations I didn't want happening to happen, they just tumbled out. "Hey, you can come on in, you know. I'm bored."

I inwardly grimaced and winced when I realised what happened. _Oh shit, don't say yes, don't say yes, don't say yes... _I chanted mentally.

"Are you sure you want me in your dorm? You do hate me," Edward asked, rubbing the back of his neck with his left hand again.

"Yeah, you're not intruding or anything. Just a short visit." I gave him the reply that I didn't plan to give him. My damn mouth made it worse.

I hated the fact that this man had a small amount of control over me, because that part of me squealed when I heard his answer.

"Uhm... okay then." He said. I moved aside for him to enter and he walked past me, taking a good look of the dorm as he stood a few inches away from me.

My eyes roamed to the video games that all the girls that lived here including mine was. He was going to see them. What would he think of all of this?

"Cool place you girls have," Edward said.

"Thanks." I closed the door.

"Had your dinner yet?" He asked.

"Uhm... no," I replied. "What do you want to do here? There's barely anything."

He picked up my book that was on the table and looked at me. "Romeo & Juliet?"

I shrugged. "It's a nice book. I was killing time with it."

He flipped to the page with my bookmark and read the words out loud; "_If I profane with my unworthiest hand, this holy shrine, the gentle fine is this: my lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand, to smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss._"

I couldn't help but continue the next line that was said by Juliet. I memorised this book. "_Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much, which mannerly devotion shows in this; For saints have hands that pilgrims' hands do touch, and palm to palm is holy palmers' kiss._"

Edward chuckled, shaking his head as he put it down. "The first few lines that were spoken when they met. It really is a tragedy, though. Romeo killed himself and his love out of sheer stupidity." he said through his teeth.

"They could have just ran away together," I said.

He nodded. "And yet they stir up a war between both families that have been mortal enemies for a long time, never getting the happily ever after they wanted."

"But they did bring peace towards both families. Their mutual loss brought them together."

"Yeah, but sometimes being selfish is good." There was a great intensity between us, and I shook my head from the hallucination.

"Dinner?" I asked.

"Yeah, thanks." Edward said. "What are you making?"

"Lasagna." I replied. "You okay with that?"

"Anything's great. Thanks." He replied. "You don't mind if I watch some TV, right? I mean, my dorm doesn't have a TV yet."

"Sure. Go ahead." I ran my hand through my hair as I headed towards the kitchen, taking out the ground beef and cheese and pasta. I heard the television turn on and I took out a pan, turning on the fire and cooking the ground beef.

Even though I was a royal, I still knew how to do the most basic things. My mother had our chef teach me how to cook some easy dishes. There may be maids cleaning my room, but even if I didn't have them I would've still kept it clean. My mother herself taught me how to sew and take care of children. She made sure I was the quintessential princess that everyone could look up to. I was used to the pressure that it disappeared. Everything was normal to me.

As I threw in mushrooms and onions, I heard music instead of the constant talking of TV characters. The ground under my feet was thumping with each beat that came out from the high quality speakers. "Somebody Told Me" by the Killers. A classic favourite of mine.

I started singing to the song and I wondered what Edward was doing. I walked out of the kitchen and found Edward looking through my iPod playlists. It was no wonder one of my favourites was playing.

"What are you doing to my iPod?" I snapped.

"Oh... uhm... I just... never mind. Sorry." He put it down and faced me. "How's the lasagna going?"

"I was just fifteen minutes into cooking it. That's probably the stupidest question I've ever heard." I glared. I was back to hating him all over again.

"Can I uh, help?" he asked.

I was caught off-guard, shocked. "What?" I said. "You want to help? Uh yeah. Sure."

He entered the kitchen and the next song that was playing was by Cheryl Cole. I went to the fridge, taking out cottage cheese, a packet of grated Parmesan cheese, ricotta cheese, and 2 eggs. Edward watched.

"Okay, mix all of these into this bowl," I pointed at the glass bowl. I handed him a whisk and he most gladly took it. I wondered when was the last time I ever saw a man enjoy cooking— and I realised it was probably last week, watching Jamie Oliver on reruns of the _Naked Chef_. Damn, Edward was starting to grow on me.

He cracked the eggs like a pro, knocking them twice on the counter before breaking them clean into the bowl. He whisked them and added all the cheese in one by one.

I took out some of the meat sauce from the pan until it was thin. I place the lasagna noodles on top. "Hey Edward, can you pour some of the cheese in?" I asked.

"Yeah," he said. He stood so close to me that I could feel him breathing down my neck. He poured the cheese sauce on the layers of meat sauce and noodles and he stopped when it was enough. I continued layering the meat sauce and lasagna noodles and he would finish that round off with the cheese sauce. We continued until everything was gone.

He stepped away from me when I needed space to walk to the oven and press the digits in before it started cooking.

"This will kind of be really long," I looked at him, chuckling. I wondered what to do during another hour with him in the dorm.

"Hey, that's okay." He said. "We can find stuff to do."

I stole the empty bowl that had cheese leftovers from his hands and he was shocked. I laughed at his expression and dipped a finger in the bowl, digging up a whole lot of cheese. I sucked on my finger and forgot how heavenly it tasted. I couldn't wait until the lasagna was fully cooked.

I put the bowl down and tapped my fingers rhythmically as my iPod played "She Will Be Loved" by Maroon 5. Suddenly, I felt large familiar hands on both sides of my waist, turning me around. I gasped.

"Edward," I said. "What are you doing?"

His eyes were an intense green, making me lost in them.

He pressed his lips against mine and I was utterly shocked by his bold move at first with my eyes wide open. He then wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me up onto the counter and I melted into his touch, kissing him back. My fingers found their way to his unruly hair, twisting and tugging on it. It was so soft and heavenly.

I didn't know how, but thoughts started running through my head. Why was I kissing Edward Cullen? I was physically attracted to him, of course. But he has been hating me because I didn't want to sleep with him, and suddenly he went up to me and told me he was sorry? Now that was fishy.

I immediately tried pulling away, but all I got was him kissing down my jawline. I loved the feeling of it, but I had to stop.

"Edward, stop." I told him, but it came out as a breathy whisper.

He didn't respond but started to nibble at my earlobe.

"Edward, please stop." I pushed him away. He stared at me, eyes wide. I got down from the counter and walked out of the kitchen. I sat down on the couch and hid my face in my hands.

"You don't want this, do you?" He asked, standing in front of me.

"I do, I just... I need your intentions to be clear. Why are we even here, making dinner?" I said. "It just wasn't meant to end up like this. We were just being friendly to each other.

"I just don't want to get hurt!" I exclaimed out of anger. I took a deep breath and sighed, closing my eyes. "You hated me for not sleeping with you and suddenly you apologise and we just..."

"It wasn't planned. I didn't mean to do that." He said, nodding in agreement. "I'm sorry you think of me this way."

He made his way to the door and I didn't have the energy to stop him. I just followed him from behind. He opened the door, hesitating but I beat him to it. He got out of my dorm and I looked into his eyes.

"When the lasagna's done, I'll send half of it over to you." I told him, smiling sadly.

He nodded. I didn't know why, but disappointment flashed across his face. "I'll be waiting for it." He replied.

I closed the door softly in his face and quickly hid myself in my bedroom. Tears spilled onto my pillow as I cried silently. I liked him, but I didn't want it to just be something that he could brush off easily and say it didn't mean anything when it clearly meant something to me. Plus, I just wasn't ready yet.

* * *

"Bella?" Alice's voice woke me up from my dreamless sleep, which I hadn't expected. I thought that Edward would appear in my dream again and was going to make me regret not letting things happen.

"Bella, are you okay?" She asked.

I realised that the air was cold. It was too cold. I moaned sleepily and pulled up the covers.

Alice placed her palm over my forehead and her hand felt cold too, but not as cold as the air. She gasped. "Oh my god, you're burning up."

Everything suddenly came rushing into my head, hurting my brain.

The lasagna. Edward was still waiting for it.

"What time is it?" I moaned.

"Oh Bella, you're awake!" Alice sighed in relief. "It's five minutes after eleven. You're having a fever! Do you have headaches when you're having a fever?"

I nodded, feeling like my brain was being stir-fried in my hot head due to the nodding.

"Is there a certain pill or syrup you prefer for fevers?" She asked.

"Tylenol," I croaked out.

She nodded hurriedly and dashed out of my room. She was still wearing the dress she wore for her date. She came back in fifty-five seconds flat, holding a box of Tylenol in one hand and a glass of water.

She punched out a pill and handed me the pill. I threw it into my mouth and quickly gulped it down with water. I finished the water from the glass, my mouth feeling dry.

Alice placed the box of Tylenol on the bedside table. "I'm going to shower now. If you need anything, you can just call me." she told me.

I nodded and she left the bedroom. Slowly, I walked out of my bed and heard the water splashing in the shower. I went into the kitchen and opened the microwave oven, not bothering to wear kitchen gloves since the lasagna probably cooled off a little. I took it out and sliced it in half with a large knife, placing one half of it in a green container.

I closed the lid of the container and put the remainder of the lasagna in the oven. I could eat that the next day.

How was I going to face Edward after just now? I quickly checked myself out in the full-length mirror in the living room. I looked like literal trash— I was wearing Scottish plaid pajama pants and a pale pink long-sleeved cotton tight-fitting shirt, with fluffy pandas smiling as my slippers. I had black circles around my eyes and my brown eyes looked drained, tired and empty. My hair was a mess.

Fuck it. Edward still deserved getting the lasagna.

I brought the container with me as I left the dorm. Taking a deep breath, I knocked on the door of C 23. After that, a pull in my stomach made me have second thoughts. Maybe I shouldn't have came here to give it to him. I could give it to him the next day. Or, if I still wanted to give it to him today, I could've at least washed my face or something. I looked and felt like trash. My brain was frying and thinking was something that was obviously not recommended.

The door opened and my breath hitched. Edward looked at me with surprise and he glanced at me from head to toe.

"Here's the lasagna from just now." I muttered, thrusting the container into his hands. "Sorry for being so late. I fell asleep after you left..."

I left my sentence and flashbacks of our kiss burned into my already-fried brain. I winced at how hard my head was thumping.

He gave me a small smile that didn't reach his eyes, but I still melted at the sight of it. "That's alright. Actually, uhm... Jasper chastised me for—"

"You told Jasper about what happened?" I gasped silently.

He quickly shook his head. "No! I didn't. He scolded me for being so mean to you. You know, him being the Southern gentleman he is. He forced me to lose my balls to apologise to you. He likes to go on about how everyone has such egos." he rolled his eyes and I saw a hint of his carefree side appear, but it quickly disappeared when he looked at me again.

"I better go now," I whispered, breaking the thick silence.

He nodded. "Yeah. You should get some rest. Continue sleeping."

"Bye." My voice broke. I walked back to my dorm and it took me a few seconds before I heard Edward close his door.

* * *

Ouch. Well, she has her reasons. Plus, she was seeing Alec. I also had other plans in stall for the whole gang. :)

Scarlett


	13. Chapter 13

"Bella?" There were raps on the door. "Bella, you need to wake—"

There was a pause, followed by soft, muffled voices.

"Let her rest. She's been sick for two days already." Rosalie whispered.

"But she should already be fully recovered from her illness," Alice replied. "She hasn't left the room in two days. _Two days_, Rosalie. Don't you think something smells fishy?"

"You mean 'something smells like fish'?" Rosalie sounded confused. "And yes. You're probably right."

Knocks on the door again. "Bella, we're going in." Alice said out loud decisively.

I hid further under the covers and moaned. I heard the door open and heels clicking.

"Bella? I was wondering if you want to go for dinner in the dining hall? Then maybe we could go for the First Chance Ball—"

"Leave me alone," I muttered to Rosalie. "Let me sleep."

"Alright," Rosalie sighed to Alice. "You heard the girl. She wants to sleep. Let her stay in! She's just recovered from a high fever."

Alice groaned. "Now that is bullshit."

The covers were suddenly pulled off of me and I hugged myself into a foetal position, whimpering. Light. Too much light.

"Princess Isabella Marie Swan, Duchess of Monaco, you will get your emotional ass off the bed and you will take your very first shower in two days. You will dress up, follow us to dinner, and dance your ass off for the First Chance Ball." Alice snapped.

"You can't order me," my voice muffled as I covered my face with my hands. "I'm the Duchessa. You can't make me do things I don't want to do."

"Oh hell yes I can!" She said, then I felt hands wrapped around my ankles. My first reaction was to kick, but the attempt was futile. I felt like I was in those horror movies where the ghost would drag the unfortunate main character down by their ankles. I screamed.

I landed on the floor on my butt with a loud thud. I glared at Alice. "What the fuck was that for?!"

She grinned, satisfied. "Good! Keep that level of emotion right there, go and shower and change into clothes appropriate for clubbing. We're going for the First Chance Ball tonight."

Rosalie pursed her lips, giving me an apologetic look. "Sorry," she mouthed.

I smiled at her a small smile. Grabbing my towel, I walked to the shower and lathered my hair and body with shampoo, conditioner & liquid soap. I washed them off and brushed my teeth, then got out of the shower. As quickly as I could, I changed into my Christian Dior white long-sleeved minidress with pleats at the skirt. I wore on black heels with straps around my ankles.

I came out with my small metallic Chanel box-shaped purse and a burgundy lipstick. Someone knocked on the door, and I groaned.

"I'm coming out soon!" I said.

The door opened slightly and Rosalie's head peeked in. "I am just here to tell you about the people who came to visit you."

"People came to visit me while I was sick?" I frowned.

She smiled. "Yes! They only managed to pass through the main door, though. They never actually saw you."

She came in, closing the door and sitting beside me on my bed. She was holding a pink crystal case with starbursts, pinwheels and other different cuts carved in the vase that it was obvious it costed a lot. She passed it to me.

"Who are those from?" I asked.

"Your mother." She replied. "She called after you slept two days ago to check in after a dinner event. Alice told her that you were having a fever, so she sent this as a get-well-soon gift the next day."

I shook my head. "She spends too much."

She then narrowed her eyes at me. "Alec came to visit this morning when you were not answering his calls. And why did Edward visit you on both mornings you were sick?"

I froze, then regained back my equilibrium. "I don't know," I shrugged. "He's probably wondering why Boho Chick hasn't been there to be his target of his mocking."

She exclaimed, "No! _Ce n'est pas elle!_Something happened!"

"Tell me the rest of the list of people who visited to see me." I changed the subject, sighing.

She folded her arms, but complied. "Jasper & Emmett visited this morning and last night. Kate came in last night too, when you slept I think. She put a wrapped present on your table." She pointed.

I noted the laptop, still in its same position as two days ago and a gift wrapped in pastel-coloured vertical lines arranged in random sizes. The crystal vase stood right beside it. Pictures of my family and cousins were on display.

Rosalie stood up, leaving. She turned around to face me. "We are leaving in five minutes." She told me, then left the bedroom.

I adjusted the crystal vase to the corner of the table at the wall, and grabbed the gift Kate gave. I peeled off the scotch tape and unwrapped it carefully, finding a medium-sized Tiffany & Co. light blue box wrapped in a white ribbon, an oversized baby bow taking up the space. My initial "B" written cursively written on a small oval piece of paper that was pasted in the middle of the white bow.

I pulled the bow and it dissolved into a white ribbon, falling slowly onto the surface. I opened the box to find another box, but a dark blue velvet one inside. I opened it and found a rose gold charm bracelet with little trinkets attached to it— a tiara, my royal crest, my initial, the Harvard crest, a rose gold heart locket, an amethyst dot charm, a silver four-leaf clover and Alice's, Kate's & Rosalie's initials carefully hung into the oval loops that chained together.

A note came together with it, written in a fountain pen with cursive handwriting.

_**I heard that you were sick, so I decided to get you a get-well-soon gift while I was at the mall. Yes, I know that you are a Monégasque duchess, which is why there are symbols of your status and the kingdom you belong to. In case you ever lose yourself on the wrong path, look at the trinkets on this charm bracelet and remember where you belong and who are the people that are going to be there at every step of your journey. I know that we don't spend a lot of time with each other a lot, but I'll be there when you need me.**_

_**Always,**_

_**Katrina Denali**_

"Aw," I sighed out. I was dying of sweetness. Kate was so thoughtful to get this for me even when I didn't ask for it. It had to cost up to $8,000 plus. It was from Tiffany & Co., after all. I fastened it around my left wrist and was ready to go.

* * *

Wasn't that sweet of Kate to give her that charm bracelet? She really seems like a thoughtful person. Does anyone have any ideas why Bella stayed in bed for two days straight, other than the fact that she was nursing a high fever?

Scarlett


	14. Chapter 14

Fifteen minutes later, Alice, Rosalie & I joined Kate in Annenberg. It was close to eight o'clock, and the dining hall was unusually emptier.

"Hey," Kate greeted. "How are you... all doing?" she eyed me and smiled.

I tried to smile back, but ended up in a grimace. "I'm doing fine. Thanks."

"The charm bracelet fits you." She nodded in approval.

"Thank you for this. I love it." I told her.

She waved me off. "That's alright. I was out shopping and decided to spend some money on others."

I glanced at all my dorm mates from Rosalie to Kate. "I'm glad it's just us girls—"

"Is this seat taken?"

My heart broke a little as I heard his voice. He was so close to me that I could hear his breaths down my neck. I closed my eyes tightly and hardened my jaw.

"No," my voice broke. "It's just us."

"Good evening, ladies." Jasper grinned, taking a seat beside Edward who sat beside me.

"Whoa, who died?" Emmett asked, staring at my pained face. He sat beside Rosalie who gave him a pleasant smile.

"No one died," I answered primly, glaring at him.

"Oh, that lasagna you made?" He made his index finger and thumb into an "OK" sign and kissed it dramatically. "Absolutely exquisite!"

"I didn't make it alone." I blurted out. "Edward helped me."

Alice narrowed her eyes at either Edward or me— I couldn't tell since we were sitting next to each other. "What lasagna?"

"Ooh, Edward, you & I should have a double date night!" Rosalie exclaimed. Emmett's face brightened when he heard the word "date". "I'll come with uh... a picture of Javier Bardem." She awkwardly said. Emmett's face quickly fell.

Alice nudged Rosalie in the rib, then whispered in her ear as she stared at Edward & I.

"Why were you both making lasagna and when was it?" Alice asked curiously.

"Lie," I muttered to Edward.

"Two nights ago, when Jasper made me apologise." He told the truth. I was afraid he'd tell more about what happened that night.

"We just made lasagna for ourselves, We listened to music and I fell sick. I had the fever remember?" I quickly continued from his sentence, my voice trembling.

He frowned at me. "You were sick these past two days?" he whispered.

"I thought Rosalie or Alice would tell you that," I replied in the same tone.

"Well, they kept saying that you were out. I even asked Alec where you were." He was breathing heavily.

My eyes widened. "You _asked Alec_? Why would you ask _him_?"

He gritted his teeth. "He is your boyfriend now anyways."

I glared at him. "No he is not! One coffee date doesn't mean I'm rubbing myself all over him!"

He raised his arms up in surrender. "Okay. Fine. I'm sorry. I asked Alec and he didn't know where you were. You weren't answering his texts. I asked him about you the day after we..."

I sighed, knowing what he was talking about. Turning back to everyone, I kept a poker face. Everyone stared at us with curiosity in their eyes.

"So are you girls going for the First Chance Ball?" Emmett broke the silence, looking at Rosalie.

"Yes we are. Dammit Emmett, we're all dressed up! How can you not tell?" Alice shook her head in disbelief, standing up from her seat. "Look!" She exclaimed, twirling in her black backless dress that ended on the top half of her thighs.

Jasper stood up and caught her in his arms. "I can see that, my dear Alice. Apparently, Emmett is as blind as a snake." He joked and she giggled. They both sat down again and their fingers interlocked.

Edward grimaced at them. "Get a room!" He laughed.

"Why don't you and Bella get one?" Emmett said.

Let's just say that I banged his head against the table the next second.

He screeched in pain. "Ow! Okay! Fine! Gosh," he muttered, rubbing his forehead.

Rosalie made kissy faces at him, rubbing the visible bump on his temple. "That is okay, big white man. I will protect you from the small skinny girl..." she cooed.

His face lit up like Christmas lights again.

I rolled my eyes and glanced at Edward's way. I found him staring at a girl who was wearing a short skirt. She dropped her napkin and she bent over, picking it up.

He whistled. "_Hell-o_," he smirked. "Five o'clock."

He was still the same cocky Edward I knew.

Emmett stared at the girl, whose short skirt was doing nothing to cover her butt. She wore a camisole and stilettos and her red curly tendrils ended at her tanned shoulders. "Nice enough," he agreed, "but nothing compared to present company." He smiled brightly at Rosalie, who was yawning.

"Looks like she's coming our way," Jasper said.

"Hello," Edward turned on his charms as he gave the girl a sexy smirk. "I'm Edward Cullen. How can I be of service to you?"

The girl's eyebrows squeezed together. "Edward...?"

"Yes?" His smirk turned into a full-on playful crooked smile that was swoon-worthy.

"Why didn't you call me back ever since the first day of school?" Her tone was lower. She was accusing him instead of asking a question.

"Oh! Oh, right..." He failed to mask his confusion. "Sorry... uh..."

"Maggie," she hissed.

"Maggie!" Emmett cried. "Maggie from upstairs! The one you brought back on our first night here!"

"Well, I'm glad _someone_ here remembers my name," Maggie seethed. "God! I should have known better..." She stormed off and left a shocked Edward here.

"According to Jane Heathrow of Fifteen Minutes magazine, dormcest is never a good idea." Alice clucked her tongue.

"Hey, then how about us?" Jasper asked.

She smiled. "That's alright. As long as we're not biologically related..."

"Whoopsie-daisy!" Rosalie covered her red pout, either at Edward's epic failure or the contents of her pineapple juice spilling over the table.

"Alright, we're going to dance!" Alice got out of her chair.

Rosalie fell off of her chair, and Kate giggled.

This was going to be a good night.

* * *

Hello! Well, click on the review button because I really would love to hear from you all!

Scarlett


	15. Chapter 15

Britney Spears boomed through the speakers, thumps vibrating from them to the floor as she sang that she didn't care if you "love me, hate me, say what you want about me but all of the boys and all of the girls are begging if you seek Amy..."

"She's singing about me, guys!" Emmett screamed over the music, breaking out into some odd dance moves. "SHE'S SINGING ABOUT ME!"

"Huh?" Rosalie yelled back.

"I love this song!" Alice shouted to Jasper.

"Me too!" He replied.

_After four tequilas:_

"Do you want to dance?"

I looked up at some guy who was 6"2. It was Edward. No, it was Alec. I was confused. I wasn't big on alcohol and I hated the side effects like this one— somehow not being able to recognise someone.

"You look really pretty," Edward-Alec complimented me.

"Thank you!" I screamed as Alice handed me another shot of tequila.

"Where _are_ we again?" Rosalie yelled.

"Lowell House!" Jasper said.

"Hey guys! I just found out that this isn't the First Chance Ball! It's the First Chance _Dance_!" Kate said.

"What?" I cried, panicking. "It's not the First Chance Ball?"

"No! It's the _Last_ Chance Dance!" Alice shouted back at me.

"I don't understand!" I said.

"It's the last chance to party before classes start!" she explained.

_Seven tequilas gone..._

Alec-Edward was dancing with somebody else now, but Edward-Alec was still dancing with me. I still couldn't differentiate who was who.

Emmett looked upset that Rosalie wasn't impressed by his ballroom dancing skills. "Did I mention that I'm a prince?" He said to Rosalie. "I'M A PRINCE!"

Rosalie immediately backed off from him and danced with someone else.

"Oh my god!" Alice yelled. "Look at Alec dancing with Bella! The man's got MOVES!"

"Wanna dance?" A random guy asked Kate.

"No! I want to go _home_!"

"But where are we?"

_Eight, nine, ten tequilas... Eleven, twelve, thirteen..._

FLOOR.

* * *

I woke up with a raging hangover the next morning, my throat parched. I rolled out of bed and stumbled my way to find Tylenol and water. I found Alice sitting on the couch with bed hair and streaks of mascara dried on her face. Jasper sat beside her, his face crumpled as he held his head.

"Jasper?" I frowned. "What are you doing here?"

"Jasper slept on our couch last night because Edward needed theirs for... unspoken properties..." Alice explained.

Jasper grinned. "Officially sexiled."

I gritted my teeth. "Hope he has better luck with remembering her name..." I muttered as Alice handed me a cup of coffee.

A cardboard box full of holes to put coffee in were on the table. There were three more cups of coffee. Alice must've bought them earlier in the morning and it was hard to believe that, with all the dried mascara streaks on her face. But again, the whole student body was probably wasted at the dance last night that they didn't have the time to realise her makeup.

Suddenly, a guy stumbled out of Kate's room, still putting on jeans. He looked like a senior.

"Hi," he greeted everyone. "I'm Jam—"

"Jamie was just leaving." Kate said icily as she emerged from the room in a satin robe and her glasses.

"Uh, actually it's James." The guy corrected her.

"Whatever. Bye now!" Kate pushed him out of the door and slammed the door in his face before he could say anything else.

"Wow," I raised my eyebrows. "And I thought you wouldn't do this kind of stuff."

She folded her arms, all of her strawberry blonde hair on one shoulder. "Being a geek doesn't mean I don't party and sleep with guys every once in a while. But I swear, I didn't sleep with that asshole. Ugh."

Jasper got off the couch. "Okay, I'm getting out too," he said. The oestrogen levels were skyrocketing. "Thanks for the coffee, babe." He kissed Alice goodbye on her cheek before leaving the dorm.

"Oh god!" Kate exclaimed angrily, approaching the cups of coffee on the table. "Seniors! They are the sleaziest guys around! Just because you want to cuddle and make out doesn't mean that you also want sex!

"All they want is sex! Sex, sex, sex!" Kate continued.

"Say 'sex' again, Kate. I don't think we've heard you said it the first five times." I said, gripping my head.

"What?" Kate waved her hands up. "It's not like I actually did it last night. I was just saying that se—"

"No more!" I shouted, wincing at the volume of my voice. "Oh shit... my head..."

"Hey!" Alice shot out of the couch. "I wonder if Rosalie's up yet. Last night, I saw her dancing with—"

A door creaked open and Rosalie came out, wearing only a wrinkly button down men's shirt and her hair was as wild as a bush fire. She wobbled around and tripped over Alice's heels lying astray on the ground.

"Oops!" She giggled and a brunette senior prefect came out from her room.

"Oops, indeed!" Alice squealed. She nodded and gave Rosalie an exaggerated thumbs up.

Rosalie looked confused. "Well... uh... it's good to have fun, but not _too much_ fun." She said to the brunette senior prefect who probably had to say that to his dormitory freshmen just like what Garrett, our senior told us.

All the girls laughed. I dropped my coffee but it didn't leak from the cover, which naturally made all of us laugh harder.

"Er, I'm getting out. Take care," the senior prefect awkwardly told us and closed the main door behind him softly.

"Somehow, I don't think that's part of his job description," I commented, putting my cup of coffee upright.

"_Hey, I just met you and this is crazy, but here's my number, so call me maybe..._" My phone rang from inside my room. My heart sank. I knew whose ringtone that was.

I was about to dash into the room but Alice stopped me.

"So... got any action?" Alice asked.

"No!" I shook my head fast. "Dammit, Alice! I'm a virgin!"

Kate & Rosalie stared at me with their jaws wide open.

"Holy shit," Rosalie squeaked.

I flushed. "I'm technically one! My hymen still exists!"

Alice rolled her eyes. "Uh-huh. Sure."

Before I could register her words, I quickly ran into my room and answered the phone.

"Yes, Jacob?" I said in my best "make it quick because I don't have any time for you" tone.

"Bella, it's important. It really is." Jacob's voice crackled over the speaker.

"Well, it must be _really_ important if it necessitated an actual phone call. What happened? Is your computer broken, or did you realise that—"

"Bella, listen to me!" Jacob sounded exasperated. "Hey, remember that... tape we made? For fun?"

I tensed. "Well... uhm... yeah, I–I guess."

"Well, the tape is currently in the wrong hands." he took a deep breath and sounded like he was cringing. "The seniors told me that in order to join their frat, I had to tell them about it and they wanted proof, so I gave it to them."

"How... how is that possible?" I whispered, my hands trembling. "Why... Why _the hell _would you do that?!"

"I'm sorry, 'kay?" He shushed me, as if there were people who could hear me screaming through the phone. "I was actually thinking like, what you didn't know couldn't hurt you and all but—"

"What do you mean, 'what I didn't know couldn't hurt me'?" I glared at the ceiling as I jumped into my bed in anger.

"Hey, I'm sorry—"

"You're SORRY?!" I roared, leaping off the bed. "When— How— Why..." I spluttered, then took a deep breath to collect myself. "When did this happen?" I asked in the calmest voice I could have right now.

"It was... It was senior week and—"

"SENIOR WEEK?" I screamed through the phone, my hangover forgotten and my throat dying. "But.. But who else knows about this?"

"Just the seniors! Look, I'll get into this—"

"You've got to fix this." I said with finality in my voice.

"I will, okay? Soon—"

"No, this is not good enough. Fix it _right now_!" I told Jacob off and ended the call.

I couldn't breathe properly. My heart was beating fast. My palms were sweating. This couldn't have happened... but it did. If it got out of hand, the worst things could happen. If my parents got this... I could be dethroned from my title as Duchessa. And it would be online, shaming my family name and country.

I held my head in my hands, squeezing my eyes tight. Tears flowed from my shut eyes. This was bad.

* * *

A night of pure fun can turn into a morning of unexpected events. Can anyone easily guess what the tape is about?

Scarlett


	16. Chapter 16

Jasper stared at me as I held books about different majors in college. I scribbled down notes in concentration, my eyebrows scrunched together. "Thanks for coming over, Jazz," I told him when I looked at him. He quickly looked down at his notes, pretending to focus on his own class hunt.

"I've been freaking out on this thing! Gosh, this is frustrating." I mumbled. I was aware that there was something bigger to freak out on, but this was something to distract me. "I have no idea what to study." I continued. As long as Jacob kept to his word, no one in Harvard or the world would know.

"I'm the only one who hasn't figured out what I want! Kate & Al have already picked their majors, while Rose just picked randomly, saying that all she could do was 'try not to flunk out' and 'go with the flow'!" I talked on and on without a break.

Hearing her name, Kate glanced at me as she held a book about psychology, her black square-framed reading glasses halfway sliding down her nose. The three of us sat around the coffee table as Rosalie (future music major) was probably napping in her room and Alice (future law major) literally took shopping period as a time to go to Saks Fifth Avenue.

So far, I only had one class— "Romance Studies". I wanted to know how "true love" felt like, and with me being a hopeless romantic, I was going to pass this class easily and I've already learnt two of the languages acquired for the class. As I flipped through the chapters of classes provided, I closed my eyes and closed the book. I was going to pick my next class by randomly flipping to a page without looking. I took a deep breath and opened my book, my eyes closed.

I opened my eyes and decided that the class that was randomly picked was not bad. I quickly jotted down Classics 97a on my notebook, right under the Romance Studies. After hours of searching, I got HAA (History of Art & Architecture) 10 and Folklore & Mythology 128 classes added to my list. I was proud to say that I was a new art major here in Harvard.

Jasper took a peek at my choices. "Foreign languages are required."

"Isn't the romance languages thing already a foreign language class?" I frowned.

"Yes, but I suggest you take another language class." He pointed out.

I groaned, my fingers stabbing my hair as I covered my face. I quickly scribbled down Greek as my foreign language class. I went to the bathroom so that I could wash my face after those tiring hours. I stared at my reflection in the mirror and I knew that there was something wrong with me. With my royal-like features (can't blame anyone; I was a royal after all) and my really high IQ, it was deemed a violation to Maxwell's laws of attraction; the prettier you are, the dumber you are. Apparently, I was an exception.

I shook my head at myself for thinking such negative stuff about me and headed out. Jasper looked up at me from his notes. "Hey, Bella? I think that I should take Classics too."

I beamed. "Great! At least I'll have a friend to—"

A phone rang and I could hear it vibrating. Jasper froze, then took out his phone, pressing the answer button. He put it to his ear. "Hello?"

I could practically hear a woman's voice over the phone and the voice was not from anyone I knew. Jasper chuckled sheepishly as he covered the mouthpiece and looked at me. "It's my mom."

He removed his hand from the mouthpiece as he continued talking to his mother. "Yes, Mama, I'm fine... You don't need to send your cookies here... The dance was fun; a lot were getting drunk and making bad decisions... _No_, Mama, no, I swear I didn't do any of that. I was kidding!... Yes, your care package is with me. I haven't opened it yet... I need to hang up, okay? I have to pick my classes... I'll call you! Promise!... Every day?!... Okay, fine. I need to go! Love you, Mama." He tapped on the red button on the screen and sighed out loud.

I cocked an eyebrow. "Really? Your mom?"

He flushed. "My mother worries a lot." He opened his black bag's zip and took out a medium-sized green box. "It's probably her cookies..."

His face contorted in panic when he saw what his mother sent him in the box: condoms. Extra large. He immediately slammed the cover of the box down but not before I could see it. Kate was oblivious, still studying her book.

"Wow..." I giggled uncontrollably. "Mama must _really_ have real confidence in your baby-making abilities..."

"Yeah," he muttered. "I mean, _no_! Ugh, Mama! Oh god..." He piled his notes together and threw the box into his bag. "I'm just going to finish this... in my dorm room..."

"Okay." I said, still laughing. "Thanks for coming over!"

As Jasper opened the door to the hallway, high-pitched giggles filled the place. My head snapped up and I saw Edward with his arm wrapped around a blonde who was giggling uncontrollably. He dipped his hand into Jasper's backpack and his face lit up when he found what he was looking for.

"Tell Mrs. Whitlock thank you," Edward grinned cockily and winked at (unmistakably) me. He then opened his dorm room and slammed the door, the giggles and shrieks fading.

I glared at the door of C 23, gritting my teeth as I flipped the light & temporary wooden table that served to be a random furniture piece.

A moment later, Alice came back with shopping bags as she stormed through the door. She narrowed her eyes at me. "Seriously? Why are you sill moaning over your classes? Lighten up! It's freshman year, and haven't you realised you hadn't had any romantic shit happening after your breakup other than Alec?"

I pursed my lips, my mind drifting off to _the_ night.

Right at that moment, the door opened and closed fast and we found a sweaty-looking Emmett leaning against our door, panting.

"What_ the hell_ are you doing here?" I asked.

"Pardon my rudeness, cousin, but I have to stay here for a moment!" He whisper-shouted.

"Why? Something's happen—"

So many footsteps could be heard in the hallway, interrupting my sentence and there was no way in hell that there was a party going on outside.

My eyes widened. "No shit! Something _has_ happened! Why the fuck are the paparazzi here?"

Emmett groaned, his fingers digging into his hair. "Long story short, I dated Irina Thomson, serial party girl. She eloped with some dude and now everyone thinks I'm in a scandal that—"

A loud pounding at the door froze Emmett.

"Oh god— WHO THE HELL LOCKED ME OUT?! Let me in!" Rosalie shouted from the hall.

Emmett quickly went to hide in our kitchen and I was left to unlock the door. Rosalie was holding up an article from a British gossip magazine. "Oh, mes chéris! Have you seen this?!" She thrusted it Alice's and my faces. "_A Broken Heart of A Prince! England's young prince Emmett McCarty is devastated by recent news that long-time girlfriend Irina Thomson, daughter of billionaire Caius Thomson has eloped with singer Laurent Jensen last weekend. Eyewitnesses say that the prince and Laurent were found fighting last Friday night. Sources claim that the prince is in his first year at Harvard_—"

"Rose, he's—"

"Here." She completed Alice's sentence, watching Emmett emerge from the kitchen.

Well, everything just heated up for everyone in Harvard. And yeah, I think this was a cursed place.

* * *

What do you think? I'm so tired right now that I can just doze off right now... Anyways, for a dear reader of mine, I know that French people don't always say mon chérie or mes chéris all the time, but Rosalie over here is a little ditzy. And, the reason why Edward can still be sleeping with other girls and Bella can still be dating Alec because they're trying to keep their minds off each other. *spoiler alert here!* Even though Edward continues to be the manwhore he is, he really isn't sleeping with anyone else ever since the night he kissed Bella.

Scarlett


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